Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure
by uruturamanzenith
Summary: When a powerful alien warrior chases his query to the Lylat System, The Star Fox team and the whole system get dragged into an intergalactic war of Good vs. Evil that could spell doom for Lylat.
1. A new Hero, an Old Enemy

I do not own Star Fox or the Ultraman franchise. All characters belong to either Nintendo, or Tsubaraya Pro.

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventures.

Chapter 1

A new Hero, An old Enemy

He has pursued it across the gulf of space for some time now. The space craft was trying its hardest to escape him, but he would have none of it, not if he can help it. The saucer-shaped craft was coming into view now. It's now or never. He fired his slash-beam at it, hoping to damage it. However, the ship proved to be more agile than he previously thought. It fired its own yellow beam at him from its underside, hoping to drive him away. To no avail, he simply rolled out of the way. The two of them continued their fierce duel.

Not too far away: The Great Fox was heading back from a vacation on Zoness, the Star Fox team having some time off, for a change. After the Saurian Crisis, the team welcomed their newest member, Krystal, with open arms, or at least Fox did. It has been approximately two months after Fox defeated Andross for the second time, and invited Krystal, the mysterious blue vixen, to be a part of his team. Having no where else to go, the vixen readily accepted. After the time spent on the team, she has already proven her adaptability with an arwing, but still has some trouble with simple house-hold items, like the light-switch, or a water faucet. However, the team has supported her through it, and has come to see them as a second family, almost. On the other hand, she is not without a few surprises of her own; being a Cerinian vixen, she has telepathic abilities that allow her to read minds and emotions like a book. However, she is, more than likely, the last of her kind, since her own planet was destroyed in an unknown cataclysm. Having been on a couple of missions herself, she has already proven to be on par with most of the other teammates, especially Falco, which he finds to be a little bit irksome. This was her first time to Zoness, and after hearing how it was a dumping ground for toxic waste for Andross during the Lylat Wars, she expected it to be a dead, polluted world. However, the Lylat System has strived to undo the damage that the mad ape has done to it, and has done a rather good job of it, so far. Fox McCloud, the person responsible for Andross's defeat, was highly celebrated, as was the rest of the team, on Corneria, his home planet. However, fate has transpired to thrust them into an adventure they couldn't dream possible.

"Hey, Peppy, I'm getting' something on radar." Slippy, the ship's mechanic and master technician/engineer, was at his post on the command head. Having been given guard duty, he was almost begging for something to happen, just so he wouldn't fall asleep. As the saying goes, you should be careful what you wish for. Peppy, the wizened hare and tactical officer of the team, walked over to Slippy, and looked down at his scanner. The little amphibian wasn't joking, two large objects were heading almost right for them. At first, he just thought that they were ordinary space-craft, considering that this is a rather busy space-lane that they decided to traverse. But, experience and instinct told him otherwise.

"Do we have visual, yet?" Peppy asked.

"Should be coming into range here shortly." Slippy replied, his high-pitched voice full of excitement. Then, the main screen flickered to life, and they saw what those two objects were.

"Slippy, get the team up here, stat!" Peppy ordered. While the amphibian handled that, he stared at the two objects that were dancing in space and exchanging fire. One was a type of flying saucer, while the other one was just a big ball of red light. At once, the whole team assembled on the deck.

"What's this about? I was in the middle of my routine afternoon nap." Falco complained, the blue avian wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"That's what, Falco." Peppy said, pointing to the screen. The team saw the two objects firing at eachother.

"What…are they?" Krystal asked.

"No idea. Are they headed for us?" Fox asked.

"Not directly, but they are headed in our general direction." Slippy said.

"Well, then, get us out of their way. I don't want us to be caught in the middle of a fire-fight." Fox said. Slippy steered the ship out of their way, but the saucer had other plans. Since it knew that it couldn't win against its pursuer in a head-on conflict, it decided to switch tactics. It made a b-line for the Great Fox, hoping to use the ship as a shield. It flew behind the Great Fox, and held its position there, having the ship in a powerful tractor beam. The emerald ray of light was holding fast the Great Fox, while the ship tried desperately to break free.

"Can't we get out of here?!" Fox shouted.

"Sorry, Fox! Whatever it is that has us, it ain't letting go!" Slippy said, trying to break the ship free. And, the crimson ball of light was getting closer to them. That's when Krystal felt it, an intelligence inside of the light. She looked at the light that was approaching them, and stared.

'Who is in there?' she wondered. Then, an arrow-shaped beam fired out of the ball of light, striking the saucer. Disgusted by the cowardly act the entity had used, he planned on making him pay dearly for it. Then, when the saucer was far enough away, its occupant decided to switch tactics, yet again. In the ship's control, a robed figure pressed a switch, an evil grin playing across his features. A port on the underside of the saucer opened, and a type of capsule dropped. 'Chew on this for a while, Garrison member.' the figure thought. The capsule hovered for a moment, then exploded. When the smoke cleared, a monstrosity appeared. It was skeletal in appearance, with wings on its back, three-fingered claws, and a reptilian face. It shrieked, and made its way to the red ball of light. The ball of light rammed itself into the monster, sending it flying out of control in the opposite direction. Then, the monster targeted some easier prey; it was headed for the Great Fox. The light was on an intercept path, and a remarkable transformation was in place; the light swelled, and became a humanoid shape, matching the monster in size. It rammed the monster again, sending it away from the Great Fox. The team stare at what just saved them; it was huge, at least fourty meters tall, red and silver, being mostly silver with the red acting as the covering, it even sported a pair of red 'boxers'. On its chest, was a shining blue light that glowed steadily. Its head was strange, as well, in that it was silver, and helmet shaped, looking like a mask, with two large ovals that were glowing a yellowish light, and a type of mouthpiece, and a fin going through the center of the head. It looked at them, then turned its attention back to the monster. It got into a battle stance, and rushed at it. On board the Great Fox, the team was busy trying to get the ship back on-line, but to no avail, the tractor beam having knocked out almost all of the ship's systems.

"When will we have the main power back online?" Fox asked.

"No idea. Whatever that thing was that hit us, it just about knocked everything out." Slippy said, trying to re-route systems to their back-ups. Falco was busy over at his console, as was Peppy. The only ones that weren't busy, were Fox and Krystal, the latter staring at the battling giants. She felt the presence inside of the light, and felt it as the same as the giant; Overwhelming power, and an incredible need to protect these people. 'Why do you fight so hard to protect us? You don't know us.' she thinks. The battle between the two giants still raged on, the red and silver giant went for an overhead chop, only to have the attack strike against solid bone. Then the monster fired two fireballs at the giant, making it back off with a pained grunt. Then, the monster rushed at him, and sunk its fangs into the giant's shoulder. The giant tried to beat it off of it, but to no avail. Then the giant gripped the monster, and pried its jaws off of him. Then, the giant performed a shoulder toss, and threw the monster several hundred meters away. Deciding to end this, the giant placed his arms in a plus shape, the right arm, horizontal, in front of the left arm, which was vertical. Then, a blue/white beam issued forth, and struck the monster. After a few seconds, the beam died, and the monster blew apart into millions of pieces. The team saw this, and stared in surprise at what had happened. The giant turned to them, and floated to them.

"Slippy, bring that power up, now!" Fox shouted, as the giant neared them.

"I am, I can't! It's not responding!" the amphibian wailed. The giant stopped just short of them, and studied them. The team looked at their mysterious savior with a mix of fear and awe. The giant turned its head, suddenly, and saw the saucer charge up its main weapon, aiming it directly at them. Without hesitation, the giant got in between the Great Fox, and the saucer. The saucer fired its main weapon, which collided with the red and silver being. It was sent flying through space, headed for a mostly green world, while the saucer made its escape.

"Slippy, what world is he heading for?" Krystal asked.

"That looks like Fortuna, but why?" Without hesitation, or giving a reason why, the blue vixen bolted out of the command head, and headed for the hangar. Fortunately, the hangar still worked, and the force-field was still operational. Krystal jumped into her arwing, and flew out of the hangar. The team followed suit, minus Peppy, who remained behind as tactical.

"Krystal, what the heck are ya doin'?" Fox asked into his headset.

"He may need our help. You saw how he took that shot, he could be hurt or worse!" Krystal replied.

"Are you crazy?! What could you possibly do for that thing?!" Falco shouted.

"A lot more than you are willing to do, Falco." Krystal replied, showing disdain for the bird's attitude.

"Krystal, think about this. We have no idea what that thing is. For all we know, it could kill us all without a second's hesitation." Fox tried to reason.

"I know he wouldn't do that." the vixen said.

"And how do you know that, Krys?" Falco asked, rolling his eyes.

"If you were paying attention, you probably would have noticed it shielding us from that attack, with its body no less." she replied once more. Krystal flew to the surface of the planet, and tried to look for any indication that the being might've touched down near here. Something that big, would have to leave something like a crater behind. However, she saw nothing out of the ordinary, just lush jungle that the planet is infamous for. Then, as she was headed for a large lake, she felt it; an alien presence. It was unconscious, that much she was sure about, but she was able to home in on it. Before the others could get to her, she touched down near the water's edge. After jumping out of the cockpit, the blue vixen drew her staff, just to be on the safe side. She went into the interior of the foliage, following her senses, until she found him; lying in the middle of a clearing, evidently made by its crash, the giant had shrunk substantially, being no bigger than a man. It was lying face up, and its glowing eyes were dark. As she made her way closer to it, Krystal could feel the energy given off by him. Then, his eyes just flashed to life. She was barely standing over him, and he tried to back away from her in apparent surprise.

"Easy, easy. I won't harm you." she said, gently. The entity seemed to be calmed by this. It tried to rise, but let out a pained grunt, and clutched its right arm in apparent pain. The voice it had, had an almost echoing effect to it.

"Are you hurt?" she asked. The being looked at her, its glowing eyes scanning her. She pulled out her kerchief, and proceeded to tie it around the supposedly pained area. The being watched her doing this, fascinated that this creature was giving him aide, without a second's hesitation. When she was done, the cloth was wrapped tightly around his silvery arm.

"There. In a little while, it will be good as new." She said standing back up, a satisfied smile playing across her vulpine features.

"A-arigato." the being said, in its echoing voice.

"What?" Krystal asked, tilting her head to one side.

"Arigato." he said again.

"Well, if that's your way of saying 'thank you', then you are very welcome." Krystal replied, smiling broadly. The entity nodded, and stood up. The being towered over her, with the vixen meeting its broad shoulders. He stared at her, wondering what kind of life-form this was. In all of his travels, and of all of the races he has encountered, he has never met one quite like this before.

"Krystal, where are you?!" Fox's voice was heard. Both of them turned their heads in the direction of the voice. With a final glance at the vixen, the red and silver being took a step back. Krystal turned just in time to see the being look up.

"SHUWATCH!" With a loud shout, the being was flying through the sky, and back out into space. Krystal stared after it, watching it turn from a humanoid into a speck, then nothing in a matter of moments. The rest of the team found Krystal in the clearing, and gathered around.

"There you are. We were worried." Fox said, grinning broadly. Krystal returned his smile.

"Say, where's the red and silver guy at?" Slippy asked, looking around.

"He's gone." Krystal said, looking up where the being left. The rest of the team followed her gaze.

"Well, let's head back to the Great Fox. There are repairs to do, and a very interesting report that I have to fill out for General Pepper." Fox said, not losing his smile. The rest of the team followed him.

Back out in space: He has been delayed by the sudden attack, and allowed his query to escape. He knows full well the consequences that will hold, should he find an inhabited planet. After all, Shodai had stopped him once before, after coming to a certain blue and green world, where his legacy as the legendary Ultraman began. If he doesn't stop him, and soon, then the same thing that almost befell that world will happen again. That was something that he will not allow, not if he can help it. He remembers how he came to Earth, and collided with a human, while pursuing an evil alien named Bemular. How, in guilt, he merged his life-force with said human, and the two became one entity, Ultraman. After countless battles on Earth, Ultraman lost his final fight to a powerful adversary, and was forced to separate from his former host. However, his superior gave him a second life, allowing him to live out the rest of his life an a human being, as he was meant to do. Now, after pursuing his enemy across space, he may be forced to make another inhabited world his next battleground against this conniving foe, a foe he knows all too well. The nearest inhabited world was coming up, and if luck would have it, his target as well. He decides to keep a low profile, and hangs close to the large blue star, where his life-force is drawing power from. He looks down at his right arm, where the kerchief that the alien girl had bound on his wound was. He places a hand on it, the pain long since had ceased. Why then, does Shodai keep it on?

Corneria, several hours later: The Great Fox has docked in the space-port, awaiting repairs to its damaged parts. The team was in the pre-paid hotel, courtesy of their often employer, General Pepper. Fox McCloud decided to personally hand him his report, regarding the incident that happened just hours before. The old blood-hound, wearing a red uniform and white gloves, looked over the papers with interest.

"Most intriguing. And you say that you have no idea where this entity came from, or who or what was in the craft that he was chasing?"

"That is correct, General." Fox replied.

"I see. Well, the important thing is, that you are safe and sound. After all, you are the best mercenary team in the Lylat System, and I wouldn't want anything to happen to you." he said, getting up from his seat, and walking over to the window, overlooking Corneria City. "You said that, Krystal had made contact with the being?" he asked, not turning his gaze from the view.

"Yes, sir. She said that she aided it, and then it flew away after saying thanks." Fox replied.

"So, our friend here knows how to appreciate something, eh?" Pepper said, thoughtfully.

"Sir?" Fox asked.

"Nothing, Fox. Just an old man milling over a thought." Pepper said, turning to Fox with a slight smile on his face. "You are dismissed."

"Sir." Fox turned, and exited out of Pepper's office. The general sat back down in his chair, and looked up at the ceiling.

"So, they've come to the Lylat System after all." he said to himself.

Fox made his way out of the CM headquarters, and to the hotel that the team was staying at. Corneria City was bustling in the afternoon, with all sorts of anthropomorphic creatures going to and fro in their busy schedules. Fox made his way down the street, and entered the hotel. He checked in with the clerk, and made his way to his room. After entering the suite, he crashed onto the bed, and proceeded to kick his boots off, the soreness of having them on for several hours on end was starting to dissipate, and he groaned in relief. He removed his vest, and made his way to the kitchen, and pulled out a soda from the fridge, and sipped it leisurely. He looked out of the window, and at the busy city, vehicles of all types going to and fro, while pedestrians on side-walks did the same. He continued to look out, when a knock on his door broke his concentration. He went to the door, and saw Krystal standing there.

"Hey, you. I was wondering if you would be willing to show me around the city. After all, I haven't really seen much of this place, except once." Krystal said, grinning broadly. Fox stammered before getting a reply out.

"Uhhh, yeah sure." he said.

"Great. I'll be back in a bit." she said, dashing down the hallway. Fox sighed, and placed his boots and vest back on. Soon, the vixen was back, in a dress that Fox had picked out for her not too long ago. It was bright blue, and matched with her fur almost perfectly. The two made their way out of the hotel, and out into the city. After walking down the sidewalk for a bit, they came across a park, and made their way down the path. They saw children playing amongst eachother in in the wooded area, and smiled at them. Other couples were out and about as well. After what seemed like a half hour, they made their way to a coffee shop, and just talked for a bit. Although having known eachother for a few months, they were beginning to feel something for the other. Krystal was saved by Fox on Sauria, when Andross captured her in a giant crystal, and planned to use her in his plan to resurrect himself. It succeeded, but his apparent victory was short-lived, as Fox defeated him soon after. After the save, Krystal approached Fox to thank him personally, and that was when he offered her the chance to join his team. Since then, chemistry has been forming between the two of them. They began to have feelings for eachother, and not just from gratitude on Krystal's part. She wondered, where her life will take her with this man.

In orbit around Corneria: The saucer was just beyond sensor range, and even so, his ship would be cloaked from this race's primitive sensor technology. He smiled at the potential planet that would soon be in his grip. He was thankful that the garrison member who had pursued him was ignorant of it. Then again, he has clashed with him before, so he knows how he works. However, this time, he would not be able to stop him. He could have sent one of his subordinates to do the job, but felt like doing this one himself. He smiled, and pressed another switch. The bay opened, and another capsule fell out, headed for Corneria. 'Soon, I will possess all.' he thinks with glee. Shodai sensed this, and arrived just in time to see the saucer escape back out into space. That wasn't his immediate concern, however. It was what the mad-man sent to the planet's surface that he was worried about. He could feel her presence on the planet, the one who gave him aide, and felt the kerchief on his arm. With post haste, Shodai sped after the capsule.

Corneria, just over the capital city: The capsule was descending fast. Sensors were unable to detect it, on account of the strange alloy that it was made of. It stopped just above the city, and hovered there. Being a shiny, chromed cylinder, the light just reflected off of it, and the crowd did not notice, all except two. Fox and Krystal were heading back to the hotel, when the vixen felt something. She looked up, and saw the cylinder floating. Fox followed her gaze, and felt dread seep up into his spine. Then, the capsule exploded with a loud explosion, catching everyone's attention. Everyone in the immediate vicinity looked up, and saw a giant form drop to the ground. It crashed, kicking up dust, pavement, and black-top from its impact. It rose up, and the people looked upon the new horror with terrified looks. It was gigantic, standing almost fifty meters. It was covered in what looked like a course hair, although rather thin, as some flesh had shown through, Its head was covered in a thick mane, and its face was a hideous visage that was almost human-like, except with fangs, and a single bulging eye in its forehead. It screamed into the heavens, and the people ran in fear.

"Peppy, can you get the arwings here?" Fox asked, talking into his wrist-watch communicator.

"It'll take about five minutes for them to get there, Fox. ROB is handling everything now." The elder hare said.

"In about five minutes, this thing is going to tear the city apart with its bare hands!" Fox almost shouted. It was no use. The thing was thrashing around the city center. It was a giant humanoid, standing on giant legs, swinging its thick arms, which ended with wicked looking claws that looked like could shred steel. It roared, and tore the buildings apart with ease as the terrified populace tried to seek cover. The military was quick to act, the Landmaster battalion and Cornerian Fighter squadron scrambling to subdue the beast. However, their efforts merely angered it, their shots glancing off of its armored hide. It stomped on the tanks, and swatted down the fighters. Then, it saw the pair on the road, and decided to head for them. Fox and Krystal ran from it, not equipped to handle something that large. They ran into a dead end, an looked up at death in the face. Krystal shut her eyes as the giant lifted its foot over them. Then, there was a whooshing noise, and a noise of something hitting the giant, sending it screaming back from them. Krystal opened her eyes, and looked up, her smile grew to ear to ear while Fox stared in surprise. Standing in front of them, towering in his full fourty meter height, was the same alien being that Krystal had helped just hours before. His back was turned to them, fists planted on his waist as he waited for the monster to stand back up. It lumbered to its feet, and screamed at the attacker. Shodai got into a battle stance, and prepared for anything. The beast charged at him, and Shodai locked hands with it, neither giving the other an advantage. Both were equally matched in terms of strength. Then, Shodai turned around suddenly, the combatants back-to-back, with Shodai holding the beast by its claws. Then, Shodai leaned forward, and the monster flipped over his back. Shodai rolled onto his back, with his foot planted on the monster's stomach, and used the momentum to propel the monster away from him, and sent him crashing into some abandoned buildings. Shodai stood back up, and the beast got up as well, anger burning out of its single eye. Then, its eye glowed with yellow energy, and fired a yellow beam from its eye at Shodai. The alien warrior knew that it was electric based, and stood firm, with his fists planted on his waist. The beam made contact with his chest, but did no damage at all. The beast roared in anger, and Shodai beat a fist on his chest, a sign of power. The beast came in, swinging in a blind rage, hoping to swipe the alien warrior's head off. However, Shodai nimbly dodged the clumsy assault, and grabbed one of the arms in his hands. He performed a shoulder toss, and dragged the beast up to its feet, and did the action again, and again, and again. After four tosses, the beast was slumped on the ground. Then, Shodai took its legs under his arms, and swung the creature around a few times before letting go, sending it flying into the ocean that was near the city. After splashing around, the Cyclops stood back up, rather uneasily. Shodai decided to end this. His form started to glow white, then the light went into his arms, where he placed them into a plus-shape. Just then, a bright, blue/white beam erupted from the edge of his hand, and collided with the Cyclops. Soon, it was engulfed in a giant explosion, and disappeared into nothingness. Shodai dropped his pose, and looked back at the people who were staring up at him. He nodded at them, and placed his hands on his waist again. He looked up, and shouted "SHUWATCH!", and flew into the blue sky, and back out into space. Krystal looked up, and smiled broadly, saying one word under her breath that she learned from the alien being; "Arigato."


	2. Shodai's Big Entrance

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 2

Shodai's big Entrance

Not long after the Cyclops incident, Shodai was orbiting the star that is Lylat. His race is one that thrives on solar energy, and as long as they remain in contact with it, they remain almost invincible. He floated in front of the star, letting the light and warmth fill his being. He remembers the alien girl who aided him, and how she was on that planet that he had just saved. He would like to know more about her, and why she was so unhesitant to help him. However, even he knows that he can't just appear before her on a whim. No, even though he would like to see her again, he knows that his duties must come first. He must be ever vigilant, ever watchful, for the enemy is a cunning one. The monster he easily defeated, is but one in many that he has in his arsenal. And, Shodai suspects that he has something else up his sleeve. He will have to be patient, and wait.

In orbit around Corneria: The Great Fox was done getting repairs to its damaged systems. The team was ready for action once more, although they are a little bit bothered by the recent events for the past day.

"Man, who'd a thunk that we'd see three monsters beat the living daylights outta eachother. It's like a bad sci-fi flick, if you ask me." Falco, the ace pilot, comments while performing maintenance on his arwing. Although Slippy is capable at doing the repairs on the fighters, Falco prefers to do his own repairs. The rest of the team was doing the same, with Slippy helping out here and there.

"Still, it was pretty dangerous near the end." Fox said. "It's a good thing that our guardian angel showed up when he did."

"Speaking of which, I wonder who he is. Why does he fight those things, and who or what was in that saucer that's been sending monsters out." Slippy asked out-loud, while giving Krystal a hand on her arwing.

"Why don't you just ask Krystal? She's already best friends with that thing." Falco jibed. The blue vixen shot him a glare, but he ignored it. "I mean, who would actually help someone or something that they have no knowledge about? That, to me, is just asking for an early end, for an otherwise all too short life."

"And here, I thought that the Star Fox team gave aid to anyone who needed it, no matter who they are." Krystal said, not turning from her work.

"Look, princess, I don't know how things are run on your planet, but here, we have a little thing called 'procedure'. What it basically means is, you can't just go up to an alien life-form, and hope for the best, okay? You don't know what could happen."

"And the only alternative, is to let the alien die, is that what you're saying?" she asked.

"Well, that guy didn't look like he was going to die. Heck, he looked pretty spry, taking on that one-eyed freak like that." Falco replied.

"That isn't the point, Falco. The point is to lend aid to those who need it." the vixen retorted.

"Okay, but do you think that he actually needed it, though?" Falco asked.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"You said that it looked like he suffered an injury to his arm, and you bandaged it. A few hours later, it's good as new. I don't think he needed any help in the first place, and that you were being just a little bit too sentimental."

"Oh, I see. Sure, it's easy for you not to care about other's problems, so long as you're fine. But when those said problems become yours, I get the feeling that you will be singing to a different tune." Krystal put down the screw-driver, and stormed out of the hangar. After entering her room, she decided to calm herself down with some meditation that she learned to do on Cerinia. Soon, she was sitting cross-legged on the floor, her mind clear of any stray thoughts, and found herself in a silent bliss. Not too far away, Shodai sensed this from the alien girl who helped him. He felt that, this could be his one chance to communicate with the girl who helped him, and hopefully answer some of the questions that he has. He decides to take a shot in the dark.

'Hello.' Krystal was jolted out of her meditation by the voice. She knows that she heard it from somewhere before, but can't quite put her paw on it.

"Is someone there?" she asked out-loud.

'Not here, out there.' the voice replied. Krystal looked out of her viewport, and suddenly, her mind's eye was taken to Shodai, who was orbiting the blue star.

"Why, it's you." she said, surprise evident in her voice. Shodai chuckled at this before continuing. 'Yes, it is me. The one whom you showed compassion to on that planet. I'm wondering, why did you show such kindness towards me? For all you know, I could have been the enemy.'

"Because of two things. You saved us from that monster and the saucer, so you couldn't be all that bad at least, and you were injured. I was taught to aid those in need, no matter who they are." Krystal replied, smiling at the image of Shodai floating in front of her.

'I see.' Shodai replied.

"Who are you?" Krystal asked.

'I have many names on the planets that I have visited. You may call me by the name that I was given on my homeworld, Shodai.'

"Shodai? Are you a soldier?" she asked.

'Yes. My duty is the protection of sentient life from evil aggression. I was in pursuit of one particularly evil person, when you, unfortunately, got dragged into our conflict. And for that, I am sorry.'

"Don't be. I'm not."

'Why…do you say that?' Shodai asked, not sure what to make of her statement.

"Because, if it never happened, I never would have met you." she replied, smiling at her mind's eye image. If Shodai could blush, he'd probably be doing so now. However, through the rapport that they have, Krystal was able to feel the being's sudden embarrassment, and giggled to herself. "You don't need to feel embarrassed around me. There is one thing that I would like to know; who or what is in that ship that you were chasing?"

'My enemy. He has caused the misery and sorrow of numerous worlds. I thought that I had destroyed him, a long time ago. But, he reappeared suddenly. And now, he has set his sights on this system. I regret that, I will have to use your inhabited worlds as my battle field, as I have done before.' He said the last sentence with apparent sorrow, knowing full well that innocent bystanders have been known to get injured or worse during his on-going war against evil. Krystal felt this, and sympathized. She had seen the ugly face of war before, and does not wish to see it again anytime soon.

"Maybe, my friends and I can help you."

'How do you mean?'

"We know this system better than you do. We can keep an eye out for your enemy. Or better yet, why don't you join us. Together, we could probably find him all the more quicker." she said, her voice sounding a bit eager. Shodai thought about this. It sounds almost exactly what he did on Earth, when he combined with the human, Shin Hayata, and he was known as Ultraman.

'I don't think that, I should join with you just yet.' he finally said.

"But, why not?" she asked.

'Because, your people are probably not going to exactly welcome me with open arms. I know that it would be faster, but it would also be riskier for me.'

"That's nonsense. Granted, _some_ of us are a little thick-headed," she said, thinking of Falco, "But I'm sure that my friends will be willing to accept you. They know that you saved us from that monster, and the other people on Corneria as well. Won't you at least consider it?" she pleaded. Shodai thought about it. It would undoubtedly be easier, but he knows next to nothing about these people, save for the girl that he is conversing with.

'I will think about it. What is your name, by the way?' he asked. Krystal smiled, and said "Krystal."

'I will see you again, Krystal.' Shodai said, before tuning out. The vixen was not able to get a fix on the alien anymore, and felt alone in her room. Shodai was floating through space, his energy completely full, and still felt the sun's energy bathing him. He knew that the girl, Krystal, had a good point. However, he was hesitant on joining forces with her and her friends. 'But, why?' he wonders. 'Why am I so hesitant? Is it because, of her? What is this feeling I have?' he wonders. Meanwhile, in another part of space, the saucer that Shodai had been pursuing had decided to touch-down on the barren planet, known in this system as Venom. The ship's occupant had been contemplating on how to deal with this issue. He knew that the Cyclops wouldn't work. If anything, single hand to hand combat was Shodai's greatest strength. He'll need to switch tactics. That's when his passenger decided to show himself. Stepping from the shadows, was a long-faced ape with a pink face, white side-burns, and a weasely look about him. He was dressed in a type of red and yellow uniform, with white gloves, shoulder pads and boots, and his small white tail was sticking out of his rear end.

"Ah, I knew that it wouldn't work." Andrew Oikonny said.

"And, pray tell, would you have me do, my friend. I admit that I am rather unfamiliar with this part of space." the cloaked figure said in a gravelly voice.

"Well, for starters, I have gathered the remains of my famous uncle's armada, and rebuilt it to its former glory, and then some, if I do say so myself."

"Really? And do you think that your armada will take care of both of our problems?"

"Trust me. The Star Fox team will be out of commission in no time."

"It is not the pathetic low-life trash that concerns me. Rather, it is my nemesis." he replied, annoyance showing in his voice.

"Ah, well, him too I guess. Especially with what I got in mind."

"If you plan on taking him down with _that_, then you had best re-think your strategy. He will tear your secret weapon apart with his bare hands." he replied.

"Trust me, my new weapon is practically invincible. And, when they are both gone, you will uphold your end of the bargain, right?" Andrew asked the cloaked figure. "I will have control of the Lylat System, and only answer to you. That is what we agreed to, right?"

"You have, my word." the figure replied. Andrew left, and the cloaked figure turned, a smile playing on his unseen face. Oikonny got into his personal craft, and headed out for space. Soon, he was rendezvousing with his personal escort, and was sent to his flag-ship, the 'Pride of Andross', as he calls it. It was a large, brick-shaped carrier/assault ship, covered with weaponry and armaments of all types on its hull. It was Andrew's pride and joy. On the command deck, he took his place in his seat, and overlooked the crewmembers with a smile.

"My friends, now is the time for us to do what my uncle, the great Andross, had set out to do. My uncle started his noble campaign, but we were chosen to be the ones to realize it! For ANDROSS!" he shouted, and the crewmembers cheered, as did his armada. Now, nothing will stand in his way. The fleet's destination, Corneria.

On Corneria: General Pepper was in his office, when a lieutenant came bursting in.

"General Pepper, sir! We have a massive fleet headed right for us!"

"What?" the general shouted, standing up suddenly and knocking things off of his desk.

"And that's not all. We have a transmission as well, a declaration of war!" the canine in the green uniform said, breathlessly.

"Show me the transmission."

"I won't have to, sir. It's on every station being broadcasted to Corneria." he said, turning on his PAD, and showing the general. On the screen, was Andrew Oikonny, sitting in a throne, wearing a smug look on his face.

"People of Lylat, I am Andrew Oikonny, heir to the kingdom of the great Andross. The kingdom, that you denied my uncle. You had denied him what was rightfully his, now I will take it from you, by force. Please, do not try to resist. It is pointless now, for I have a superior force, and more advanced weapons than my late uncle did. I will realize my uncle's dream of ruling the Lylat System! I will be the new ruler of Lylat, in the great Andross's name!" the baboon laughed insanely at this, and the message was starting to replay again, when the lieutenant turned his PAD off.

"You must be joking. Now we have to deal with Andross's nephew?" Pepper asked, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I'm afraid so, sir. Looks like the apple doesn't fall far from the proverbial tree." the lieutenant said, trying to smile. The general returned it.

"Marshall all forces. Get everyone on combat status one! Are Bulldog and Husky Units still at Katina?" the general asked.

"I'm afraid so, sir." the officer said, shrugging.

"Blast. They won't make it on time."

"Sir, what about the Star Fox team?" the officer asked.

"I'll notify them myself, if they haven't already gotten the message." As the officer left, Pepper felt like a large weight had been dropped on his shoulders. "Here we go again," he says to himself.

In orbit around Corneria: The Star Fox team had already heard about Andrew's plan of conquest over their own devices. Even without the general's order, they weren't about to stand around and let him do as he pleases. The armada was already within scanner range, and the team had already scrambled in their fighters. The four arwings had launched, followed by several squadrons of Cornerian fighters, and the Cornerian Fleet as well. However, even with these odds, Andrew's own fleet was immense, at least as large as Andross's old armada. And, what's more, he boasted to have more advanced weaponry and ships than his late uncle did, adding more to the problem. As the team waited for the fleet to arrive, Krystal thought that she felt an odd sensation in the back of her head. She thought that it felt familiar, but couldn't focus on it, since the armada was now bearing down on them. In his flag-ship, Oikonny smiled from ear to ear, relishing his coming victory. "Launch the first wave." he commanded. From the armada, hundreds of smaller fighters were launched. Looking like the previous 'Invader' class fighters that Andross had used, but looked more streamlined. The jet-like fighters poured onto the defenders like a tidal wave, while the Star Fox and fleet tried to fight back. The team was famous for getting out of bleak situations like this before, and this time was no exception. For every shot they fired, almost every time, an enemy fighter was downed. Even Slippy, the least capable pilot was getting his shots in, and making them count. Krystal flew alongside Fox, and both of them rained down hell upon the enemy. However, despite their efforts, there just seemed to be no end to them. The Star Fox team tried to pierce their ranks, but to no avail. Even the fleet was having trouble of their own, exchanging fire with the Venomian carriers and assault ships. At this rate, they would not last long.

"We can't keep this up. Sooner or later, our line will break at this rate." Fox said out-loud.

"So, what do we do, then?" Krystal asked.

"We try to break through, and take out Oikonny all together." Fox answered. Krystal nodded, while Slippy and Falco heard the conversation through their headsets. The team gathered, and made a b-line for the assault ships escorting Andrew's flag-ship. Through hell and high-water they pushed through, as they were famous for doing. Peppy, in the Great Fox, was giving them tactical support.

"Listen, guys, Andrew's ship is protected by several assault ships. I believe that you know where their weaknesses are, right?" he asked.

"Always have, Pep." Fox answered. Through the thick curtain of fighters and laser fire, the assault ships came into view. That's when the team decided to step the game up; The assault ships were smaller than the flag-ship, but were no less deadly. Not carrying any fighters of their own, they relied mostly on their heavy weaponry to drive off snub-fighters and such. However, they do suffer a fatal flaw; their design made it, so that on each of the long, hammer-shaped ships, their engine core was showing on the outside. The team was quick to dispatch them. Avoiding the incoming fire and aiming for the cores, the arwings expertly aimed for the cores, and the assault ships were reduced to nothing more than useless scrap. Even Slippy was able to destroy a ship on his own. Andrew, in his command seat, hardly looked worried. In fact, he smiled openly.

"Time to collect some old debts. Release the Shogun V2." he ordered. On the ship, a port opened, and a form stepped forward, and took flight. It was humanoid in shape, wielding a large rifle-like weapon, and a shield. It was an almost exact duplicate of the old Shogun Warrior that the team encountered years ago, but with upgraded features, including heavier armor, and greater speed. It darted around the arwings, like they were standing still. The fighters tried to get a bead on their target, but to no avail. The Shogun V2 literally flew circles around them. It aimed its weapon at Slippy's arwing, and fired. It hit the fighter, clipping it in the wing.

"Fox, I got hit!" the frog wailed.

"Hold on, Slippy, we're coming." Fox said, hoping he wouldn't turn into a liar. When the Shogun V2 came for another pass, the team launched their bombs simultaneously at it. And, all of them impacted it.

"AWRIGHT! We got it!" Falco cheered. Slippy let out a whoop, while Krystal smiled to herself. Only Fox remained stoic. Just then, several yellow-hued shots burst out of the smoke, almost hitting the arwings. They got out of the way, but barely in time. Then, coming out of the smoke as if through a curtain, the Shogun V2 flew out, undamaged.

"I don't believe it! How does something like that survive four nova bombs like that?" Falco almost shouted.

'Looks like Andrew wasn't kidding around.' Fox thought. Just then, a shot clipped his wing, and he was spinning out of control.

"FOOOOOXXXX!" Krystal shouted, as the arwing spun out of control and the Shogun was aiming at it. Then, she felt the same sensation as before, and recognized it by one name.

"Shodai?" she asks to herself. Just then, a red ball of light burst out of nowhere, and caught the arwing. It took the form, of the alien warrior himself. Krystal saw this, and smiled widely from ear to ear, almost laughing as she saw him. Fox looked up, and stared in disbelief as the alien warrior looked down at him. Slippy let out another cheer, and said "Alright, good catch, big guy!" Shodai released the arwing, where it floated stationary in a part of space away from the fight, then he focused on the Shogun. He got into his battle-stance, and charged at the mech. The Shogun used its speed to avoid the alien warrior, but the alien matched its speed exactly, even catching up to it. He got ahead of the mech, and grabbed it. After stopping to a dead stop, Shodai took hold of its arm, and started to spin it around rapidly. After several spins, he let go, sending the mech flying into the remains of one of the assault ships. Shodai got back into his battle stance, and awaited for the thing to come at him. What he got, instead, was laser fire. Shodai evaded them with ease. Then, he fired his slash-beam at it, but the shield blocked the attack, and back and forth the duel raged, as both combatants went to and fro, evading, blocking, and firing. Then, Shodai released his famous 'Shredding Halo' at it, the buzz-saw shaped ring of energy flying at the mech, following it persistently like a hornet, wherever the Shogun went. Then, the halo struck home, and severed the arm that held its shield. The mechanical limb was sent, floating away aimlessly in space. The socket that held the limb threw sparks and lubricant and oil in several directions. The shogun turned just in time to get a face-full of Shodai's 'Spacium Beam' the blue/white beam of energy fired from his cross-shaped arm gesture. In moments, the mech was engulfed in a fiery explosion. Shodai dropped his pose, and nodded in apparent satisfaction. Fox, in his crippled arwing, limped back to his teammates.

"Fox, are you okay?" Krystal asked, concern in her voice.

"I've taken worse before." he replied, smirking. He looked back at Shodai, who had taken a battle stance, facing the flag-ship. The team flew up behind him, and floated alongside him.

'And you were worried that we wouldn't accept you.' Krystal telepathically sent to the alien warrior. He looked back at her, and nodded slightly.

"Told you she was BFFs with the guy." Falco said, grinning as he saw the display. Then, the red and silver warrior turned his attention back to the ship. Oikonny watched the fight with interest.

"So, this is the infamous 'Garrison member', that has my associate so worried, eh? Well, I think it's secret weapon time!" he shouted. "Boys, you know what to do!" As soon as he said it, the operators were busy setting out their commander's order. Then, the front of the ship seemed to peel back, as segments slid away, revealing a gigantic lens of some type. The team looked at it in shock, while it looked like Shodai was taken aback slightly, his arms dropping a little.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Say hello to my secret weapon! It fires a thermal-charged beam of pure awesome destructiveness! It will obliterate anything in its path, including you lot!" he said, with maniacal glee. "What, like I'd let a group of four, trigger-happy mercs-for-hire and a giant power ranger stand in my way? Fat chance! FIRE!" As soon as he ordered it, the lens began charging with energy. Shodai looked at the lens, then the Star Fox team, then back at the lens, which was glowing even brighter now. He knew he had only one chance. He got in between the ship and team, and charged his own energy. His form glowed, then the glow entered and intensified around his arms. Shodai then placed his arms in a plus-shape, the energy dancing around his arms. Just then, a crimson ray of destruction erupted out of the lens, to be met with the blue/white Spacium Beam. Both beams met, and struggled for supremacy. The red beam was larger than the Spacium Beam, but that didn't stop Shodai; grunting with effort, he pet forth more energy, and the beam expanded from the edge of his hand, to the elbow, the blue/white ray increasing in intensity. Then, the Spacium Beam forced the heat beam back, all the way to the lens. However, it didn't stop there. The Spacium Beam tore through the ship, erupting out of the other end. Klaxons went off in the command head, and the white, fluorescent lighting was replaced with danger-red. Oikonny could only stare in disbelief at what had happened.

"No…way….there's just…no way…" Panels shorted and exploded in their operator's faces, as people scrambled to and fro. "Not fair…it's just not fair…" he says to himself.

"Sir, we had better get you to your escape ship!" one of his subordinates said. Oikonny looked up, and nodded. Outside, explosions were happening all over the ship. Then, it literally tore itself apart in a fiery macabre of destruction. Shodai lowered his arms, the blue light on his chest was now flashing red, rapidly. He was really low on energy, the beam-fight taking just about everything that he had. He looked back at the Star Fox team, and nodded, before his eyes dimmed, and he disappeared in a red flash.

"Shodai!" Krystal shouted.

"What? Did…you just call him.." Fox began, but was caught off by Peppy's voice coming in.

"All right, people. The armada has just been dispersed, and are heading in all directions." The Great Fox was just coming into view, and the team was headed for it, all except for one. Krystal still scanned the space where the alien vanished, hoping for the same sign as she felt before.

"Krystal, are you alright?" Fox asked.

"He's still here, I know it." she says to herself. Then, she feels something. She doesn't know what, but she homes in on it anyway. Surging her arwing forward, she sees him, floating prone in space. Shodai had shrunken down to the size of a man once more, and was floating through space aimlessly. As gently as she could, she brought her nose up under him, having him hanging over her fuselage limply. She turned her fighter around, slowly, and headed for the Great Fox. The rest of the team saw her coming, but couldn't ask what it was that she was doing, since she was going too fast for them to see the red and silver thing on her fighter. Krystal entered her fighter in the hangar, with Shodai hanging on loosely, and he slumped off, and onto the hard floor. As soon as she had docked her fighter, Krystal jumped out of her fighter, and went to his side. She tried to help him up, but he was too heavy. The rest of the team entered the hangar, and exited out of their fighters, all gathered around Krystal and her new find.

"Uhhhhh, what are you doing?" Falco asked, staring at the limp alien, as the vixen tried to lift him up.

"Don't just stand there like a bunch of idiots, help me with him!" she shouted. Falco got over to his other shoulder and tried to lift him up.

"Come on, lift!" Krystal said.

"Oh, sure, Krys! He only weighs like a freakin' ton!" Falco complained under the weight. Fox got over to his legs, and lifted them up. Slippy got under, and lifted him up by his back. Through sweat and effort, they carried their unconscious visitor to the infirmary. Peppy was already waiting for them, having been watching them through the monitor station. He was standing by one of the hospital beds, when the team set him down with a combined groan, the bed actually lowering under his weight.

"What have they been feeding this guy?" Falco asked, stretching and moving his shoulder, now that it was free from the weight. They gathered in front of the bed, just a few feet from it.

"So now what?" Falco asked.

"We have to resuscitate him somehow." Krystal said. Falco scoffed.

"With what, praytell? What do we use, what do we need? For God's sake, what the hell is he!" Falco shouted. "This is exactly why we don't bring aliens on board! We don't know anything about him, or what he's capable of!"

"What would you have me do, Falco? Just leave him out there to die? What if it was you out there, or Fox, or Slippy, or me? Do you not care about him, or anyone else for that matter? Is all that you care about is yourself?" she asked, getting up to his face.

"Uh, guys?" Slippy started, but was ignored. Fox got in between the two blue figures.

"This is not the time for us to be fighting! Krystal's right. We need to find some way to help this guy. He saved us a few, I say It's time we returned the favor." he stated.

"Thank you, Fox." Krystal said. The orange vulpine nodded at her.

"Again, with what, Fox? You have any ideas on how to bring this guy back to life?" Falco continued.

"Guys?" Slippy started, but was again ignored.

"We could try shock-therapy, that is if his anatomy is anything like ours." Peppy started.

"He's nothing like us! I don't know anyone who can change into a freakin' giant, or shoot death rays from his bare hands!" Falco practically shouted.

"Falco, you are not helping!" Krystal said.

"Oh, like you are? This isn't something that you can just bandage, Krystal!" the avian snapped at her.

"Falco, cool it!" Fox snapped back.

"Guys!" Slippy yelled.

"WHAT?" the team shouted in unison. Just then, the lights flickered, and they saw what it was that the frog was trying to tell them; while they were arguing amongst themselves, Shodai had been reaching his right arm up, having regained consciousness, but still pretty weak. Then, light swirled into his open hand, from the fluorescent, cylindrical shaped light bulb over head. Slippy had been watching this, and had been trying to get the team's attention, but failed, until now. The lights flickered, as the glow intensified, and his whole arm glowed. Grunting with effort, light poured into his being, and he brought his arms into an 'X'-shape on his chest. With a loud shout, a bright flash of light filled the room, and the team had to shield their eyes from the glare. After what seemed like an eternity, they lowered them , and stood dumbfounded at what they saw; standing in front of them, Shodai was towering over them with his seven foot frame, and muscular build. He looked at them with apparent interest, and the team could only stare. Then, Krystal was the first one who found her voice.

"Sh-Shodai?" Krystal asked.

"Krystal-chan." Shodai answered, in his deep, echoing voice. Krystal walked up to him, her head coming up to his broad shoulders. He looked down at her.

"I'm glad that you're alright." she said, beaming up at him.

"Arigato, Krystal-chan." he said, gently.

"You're welcome." she replied. The rest of the team could only stare at them.

"Okaaaayyyy, anyone else freaked out by this?" Falco asked. For a reply, he got none. Krystal turned to them, still smiling.

"You don't need to be afraid. He won't hurt you." she said, confidently.

"Why, because you're here?" Falco asked.

"Well, for you, he might make an exception." Krystal said, a wicked grin playing on her features. The rest of the team stepped forward, towards their new visitor. Shodai was afraid this would happen. Now, there was no backing out, he had to face them. He only hoped that, things would go smoothly.

"Does, he know Cornerian?" Peppy asked.

"Well enough, to communicate to you." Shodai replied, in his deep tone. The rest of the team was taken off guard by this, not expecting this, even though they thought they did. Shodai slightly shook his head, and looked back at the aliens before him, Definitely not one that he has not encountered before. However, they were reminiscent of other life-forms that he has encountered before, like the fox, falcon, frog and rabbit, that these people are apparently based off of. They probably evolved this way. The team looked up at him as well, wondering who he really is, and where he came from, except for Krystal, who just looked back and forth, from her teammates to her new friend. It was Fox who decided to speak first.

"I am Fox McCloud, and we are the Star Fox team. What name do you go by?" he asked, in a military fashion.

"My name, is Shodai. And I am part of a federation that patrols and defends the galaxy." He told the Star Fox team the same thing he told Krystal, a little while ago, his being a soldier, and how he chased the saucer to this part of space, the works. The team took it in, and processed the information as best as they could, even if it was hard to swallow at first. Shodai couldn't blame them. This is the reason that he wanted to avoid contacting them in the first place, because of awkward questions that he may find hard to answer. Also, he found that at least one of them was giving him a wary, if not suspicious, look. Falco was keeping his eyes trained on the red and silver being, waiting for him to make a false move, or bad mistake. Krystal felt this, and would like to have a discussion with him about it later on. When he finished, the team was still absorbing the information.

"So, you're basically this policeman, who's chasing a wanted criminal across space." Slippy said.

"In…layman's terms, yes." Shodai said, uneasily.

"Well, heck, that's what he do on a regular basis." The amphibian said, smiling, his throat sac inflating and deflating as he did so excitedly. "So, since we are pretty much on the same side, why don't we team up?" he asked. Shodai looked at him, his head tilted to one side. He looked at everyone else, and they pretty much had the same expression, including Krystal, except she was wearing a 'I told you so' look. And Falco, who never took his eyes off of the alien, and his expression remained stoic as always. However, four out of five isn't bad in this case.

"What sort of team-up did you have in mind?" he asked, folding his arms.

"Uh, well, you did handle those monsters pretty well, not to mention Oikonny's flag-ship." Slippy began.

"In other words, you want to rely on me to bail you out of every predicament, right?" he asked, arms still folded.

"No no, but rather, we'll handle the small stuff, while you bash the big stuff." he said, smashing his fist against his palm in emphasis. He looked from each member, and looked down in contemplation. 'I guess I have no choice.' he thinks.

"I'm in." he said finally. Krystal smiled at him, as did Fox. Soon, Shodai was inducted as an official member of the Star Fox team.


	3. First Wave

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 3

First Wave

The cloaked figure laughed heartily. He couldn't help it, not after seeing Oikonny's flag-ship get blown to so much scrap. He had been watching the fight between Oikonny and Shodai, and if it wasn't so hilarious, he'd probably be chewing the ape out right now for being such an idiot. Andrew was standing in the corner, away from the robed figure, seething in his anger.

"I see that, sometimes, you really do have to learn the hard way, just to get a point across." he chuckled. Andrew said nothing, and just stood there.

"Don't be so hard on yourself. You had the team down, it's just the garrison member who showed up, un-expectantly. Even though I did say that he would best your so-called secret weapon. Maybe now you have some idea about who it is that we are dealing with." The robed figure turned to face Andrew, his hood revealing only his mouth. "I have dealt with him before, and I know that his kind is persistent to the end. Especially this one. Once he latches onto you, he will never let you go."

"Then what do we do, pray tell? It's not like I have an endless supply of followers, or anything."

"This is just a minor set-back, for both of us. If we combine your armada, with mine own little…menagerie I guess you could call it, we should be able to overcome this adversary."

"If this is so, then I'll need some compensation. I can't just go throwing soldiers at the guy all day. I'll start to lose support."

"I know. Which is why I've come up with this little plan. And, I think I have just the monster to do it with." the robed figure said, getting up from his seat, and making his way to a far-side panel. His boots clacked against the smooth floor, and his robe flowed behind him. He touched the panel, and it opened, revealing several capsule-shaped objects within. He pulled one out, and tossed it to Oikonny. The ape examined it in his hands, wearing a puzzled look on his face.

"What the heck is this?" he asked.

"Your new best friend." the figure said, smiling broadly.

Great Fox, at that time: Shodai was getting settled into his new quarters. After being shown a room, the alien being looked out of the window, over-looking the planet Corneria. Fox and Krystal both were present, making sure he got settled, when a thought flashed across both of their minds: 'What are we going to do about his appearance?' As if in response, Shodai turned to face them.

"Fox, will you do me a favor?" he asked.

"Uh, sure." he answered. "What?"

"Just hold, very, still." he answered. Then, twin beams of light flashed out of his oval-shaped eyes, and impacted Fox. Startled, Fox took a step back. The beam of light was like an X-Ray, showing all of his insides all at once, while Shodai took in the information. When the beams died, he nodded in satisfaction.

"Wh-what was that?" he asked, surprised.

"Just think of it as an X-Ray scan, that is, if your people still have such a thing."

"Of course we do, but..wha-" Before Fox could finish, Shodai raised both of his arms to his chest, and his form glowed with a shimmering light. Grunting with effort, the alien warrior threw both of his arms down, and the light dropped from him, like a curtain. Standing in front of them, was no longer a red and silver alien, but a red vulpine, looking very much like Fox, dressed in jeans, a yellow shirt, and a denim jacket. The vulpine smiled at them, and said "What do you think?" in a voice that was no longer deep, but sounded like it belonged to a young man. Krystal could only stare at him, while Fox stammered. Finally, he found his voice.

"What the heck is this?" he said, pointing at the new Shodai. The alien/vulpine laughed at this.

"My race have the ability to create disguises, allowing us to blend in with our environment better. I caught your thoughts, and decided to answer your question for you." Fox understood, as did Krystal; he used Fox's body as a template, getting the necessary information to create a suitable disguise. Krystal went up to him for a closer look, while Fox merely stared at him. The blue vixen looked him up and down, seeing that everything was in place; muzzle, fox-like ears, red bushy tail tipped with white, fur, and his eyes, were a fierce ice-blue. All the while, he was wearing a grin as she inspected him. She stepped back, still staring at him.

"Whoah, wait until the others see this." Fox said.

"So, are you still Shodai, or someone else?" she asked.

"Well, when undercover, we often use different names with our disguises to help protect our identities. For now, you may call me….Steven." Shodai said, with a thoughtful expression as he came up with the name.

"Steven, huh? Well, I think that it'll work for now." Fox said, wearing a slight grin, while 'Steven' matched it. The rest of the day was pretty much familiarizing the rest of the ship. Steven mentally noted each and every nook and cranny in the ship that he was shown, from the command head, to the 'rec room. All the while, everyone was introduced to Steven, the new member of the Star Fox team. Everyone, except Falco, pretty much took their new member in with open arms. The avian, however, was still wary of him. Krystal took note, and decided to pull the avian aside.

"What is your deal with him?" she asked heatedly, while they were in the hallway.

"How can you just accept him so easily. Sure, he saved us a few times. But don't forget, that's how an enemy can catch you unawares. I still think he needs watching." he said, folding his arms across his chest. Krystal could not believe that the avian still distrusted him so. After he saved his life twice in a row, he was still wary of him. Steven overheard this, and decided to try to smooth out Krystal's ruffled fur after the two were separated.

"Krystal, he's entitled to his opinion. Don't worry, I'm used to it. It's only natural for someone to not trust something so alien at first."

"But, Sh-I mean, Steven, It's not just simple distrust. It's like he's looking for a reason to attack you." she argued. Shodai merely smiled sadly, and answered "Like I said, I'm used to it. My first assignment, I was supposed to be guarding a planet from invading raiders from a far-off galaxy. At first, I was stupid, and thought that they would readily accept me as a savior."

"What happened?" she asked.

"Let's just say, that most people don't really look kindly on giants who wreck their homes when trying to shoot down enemy ships." he answered, still wearing the same smile. Krystal let out a small "Oh.", and both continued walking.

"What other planets have you visited?" she asked.

"Ohh, all kinds." he answered. "My race is one that has sworn to protect other sentient life-forms from endangerment. My duties take me to all manner of places. Places that, I'm sure, you didn't dream possible." he said. "For instance, I was assigned to this one world, where the whole population was nothing but sentient plant-life. The plants had evolved, much in the same way as your people did from animal life." he said.

"Really? A whole race of plants?" she asked.

"Mm-hm. Try making a disguise of one of them. Believe me, it isn't easy. Animal life is a lot easier to synthesize than plant life. At least, based on my experience." he said, laughing slightly.

"What type of civilization did they have?" she asked.

"One that was probably more advanced than yours. I was assigned with another Garrison member to help protect the planet from a star that was about to go super-nova. We had to evacuate everyone within a month, before the nova could consume half of the system. They had already colonized most of their system already, so it was a simple procedure, really."

"Then, why did you go, then?" she asked.

"I was still a rookie, then. I needed to hone my social skills, rather than my fighting abilities. It was a rescue mission, than anything else. Fortunately, we were able to get everyone out of the inferno's path in time."

"You said yourself, and another member. Who else was with you?"

"Another warrior like myself. He's a little bit younger than me, but is already an accomplished fighter. Although, he can be a little bit rash, and stubborn. Not to mention the…pets he keeps." he said, shuddering a the word pets.

"Pets?" she asked.

"Yes. He has…weird taste in companions." he said. Krystal laughed at his expression as the two continued down the corridor. Steven was shown the combat simulator, and was shown how to fly the arwing fighter, the craft that the team uses. Instantly, he has proven to be an adept flier. For some reason, he was reminded of the times when Shin Hayata was flying in the same aircraft that Shodai crashed into, when he chased that monster Bemular to Earth. He felt a pang of guilt over it, and Krystal felt it through her telepathy. He then was shown the Landmaster tank. While not as adept at driving it as the arwing, his results were satisfactory. Then, he was brought to weapons training. Falco oversaw this with Fox. "I really don't think he needs to do his, Fox. He can just transform whenever he wants to, and just beat the guys to a pulp."

"Falco, there are times when even transforming into my real form will not see me through." Steven answered. They were in a large room, with several targets posted on the far-side of the room, like an indoor shooting range. Steven held up a blaster, and fired at the target in front of him several times, each shot scoring perfectly. The results were sent to Fox's PAD. He looked at them, and blinked several times.

"A perfect score?" Falco said, in an un-believing tone. "Oh, now he's just showing off." he said, his tone more under control.

"What's the matter, Falco? Jealous?" Steven asked, placing the weapon back on the rack. The avian merely narrowed his eyes, while Fox stifled a laugh. The three of them exited the arms-room, and headed for the command head. After being fitted for a uniform, Steven was already looking like a member of the team. General Pepper's image flashed across the main screen, as he over-looked the data that was sent to him by Fox. He didn't tell him about his 'other side', but the general still accepted the info he was given. He wished Steven luck in his endeavors, and signed off. After going to his quarters, he sat on his bed, and pulled out an object from his left breast-pocket. It was about a twelve inches in length, with a white, cylindrical body, topped off with red, and a metal top. On its side, was a switch. This, was his beta-capsule, the same capsule that he had given Shin Hayata on their first encounter. Now, instead of his human host using it, he is using it for himself. He saw the irony in this, and laughed to himself. How long must he keep the charade up? How long must he live among these people? A year, like last time? Two, Decades? He didn't know. He just laid back on his bed, and stared at the ceiling, his thoughts taking hold.

Orbiting Zoness, at that time: Andrew was in his personal craft, with several stealth fighters escorting him. The planet before them was covered with oceans, and dotted with grey and green. This, was Zoness. At one point, it was an ideal pleasure planet, where all manner of pleasure could be found, and bought. But then, the Lylat Wars turned the pristine world into a toxic nightmare. It's once blue oceans were tainted with pollutants from Andross's armada, while he set up factories on its surface that belched forth toxic gasses, almost turning it into a dead world, and mutating the local life into horrible abominations. Now, several years later, the Lylat System had strived to clean the planet of its poisons. So far, they were able to remove a good portion of the pollutants, leaving maybe 15% of the whole planet needing to be cleansed. Almost cleansed, but still having a polluted scar on its surface. However, it wasn't pleasure that brought the group here. As Oikonny looked at the world, he could find no better a place, than to put his new 'best friend', as his strange accomplice had called it. He looked at the capsule in his hand, and closed it into a fist. He focused his attention to the matter at hand, and flew his craft and squadron into the atmosphere. The plan was simple, let the team and Garrison member handle the beast, while the stealth fighters went on a total killing spree of their own. Each of the twenty-something fighters are armed to the teeth with the latest weaponry that Andrew had developed, and were completely invisible to scanners. To him, it was just mindless destruction, something that his own armada could do without the need of some monster. Oikonny wonders, what his partner is really after. As he flies in low over the ocean, a trap-door opens up beneath his craft, and the capsule drops into the ocean. Once it has made contact with the water, it disintegrates, releasing the life-form within. It swam just beneath the surface, its dark shape present. Oikonny nodded in satisfaction, and took to space, while the stealth fighters made a b-line for the city.

Great Fox: Steven was having a sensation in the back of his head. Being a native to M78, his race's homeworld, he had a sixth-sense about danger. He felt that, an ominous presence was about to make an appearance soon, but didn't know where. He felt with his feelings, and then he felt it again. This time, pointing him in the direction he needed to go. He bolted out of his room and nearly crashed into Krystal. After rushing past her, the blue vixen followed him into the hangar. When she made it there, she was in time to see him pull out his beta-capsule, and press the switch. Light swirled out of the capsule, and swirled around Steven's being. Then, there was a brilliant flash of light, and a loud whooshing noise. After the light subsided, Shodai was seen floating outside of the hangar. He turned into a red ball of light, and streaked into space. The rest of the team saw the pair running down the hall, and decided to follow them. They saw Steven transform, and head out in a hurry.

"What's eatin' him?" Falco asked.

"I wonder…" mused Peppy. The team went to the command head, and brought up a map of the Lylat system, and plotted Shodai's last known trajectory; a straight line , right for Zoness.

"Why the heck's he going there for?" Falco asked, feeling a little peeved about this. He held Zoness in a special place in his heart, and if some red and silver alien was going there, that means that trouble will not be too far behind, in his opinion. The Great Fox headed for Zoness.

Zoness: It was a beautiful day in paradise. A family was vacationing there. After renting a yacht, they decided to see the local wild-life, while taking in para-sailing as well. However, their day of leisure would be short-lived. Beneath the surface, something was rising fast. On the yacht. The family caught sight of a couple of serpent-like Todora, thier large, snaking bodies breaching the water in a fantastic display. Suddenly, something erupted out of the water, and snatched one of the Todora in its massive jaws, and bit it in half, the halves sinking into the water. The family looked on in fear at what they saw, the females screaming in terror. It was huge, at least fourty to fifty meters tall. It was amphibious, that much was certain, having a scaly hide, long arms with webbing in between the fingers and claws, and a long neck with a long-jawed, fish-like face, tipped off with a fin on its head going down its spine. It issued a scream that no creature on the planet should be able to utter, and made its way to the shore, swamping the yacht and its passengers in the process. Little do they realize, that the monster Muruchi is about to make land. Shodai sensed its presence, and went to Zoness as fast as he could. When he entered the atmosphere, he could see that the monster had already made its way to civilization. It reached the small town, and proceeded to tear it apart. The stealth fighters were some distance away, watching the display. Just then, Oikonny's face appeared on the screen of the squad leader's.

"You fools! Why aren't you destroying anything?" he shouted.

"But, sir! The beast is doing all the work for us. It's ripping the city apart, all on its own."

"What? But then, why did he have me scramble you guys then?" he asked, looking away.

"Sir?" the leader asked.

"Never mind. Just, keep an eye on the situation, and keep me posted."

"Yessir!" As soon as he signed off of the leader's feed, Oikonny sat back in his ship, his mind full of questions. 'Why would he have me scramble my fighters, if his pet gold-fish would do all the work?' he wondered to himself. Unbeknownst to him, the cloaked figure was watching both Shodai, and Muruchi attacking the city. The figure smiled to himself, as Muruchi continued on its path of destruction. On the planet, Shodai grew to his fourty-meter tall height, and flew at the monster. He landed a drop-kick to its face, making it fall back-ward. It crashed through some burning buildings, and screeched in displeasure. The Star Fox team scrambled in their arwings, and proceeded to the surface. What Falco saw, made his heart sink. The sea-side town was an almost complete ruin, with burning buildings everywhere, and people running to and fro. The team took in the destruction, but it was Falco who reacted first. He surged forward, and fired at Muruchi in a rage. The beast rose up, and fired its own weapon; the monster opened its maw, and a flame-like heat beam fired. Falco narrowly evaded the attack, and circled for another pass. However, it was Shodai who acted first; he tackled Muruchi to the ground, and started to rain his fists onto its fish-like face. However, Muruchi fired its heat-beam again, and struck the alien warrior in its face, making him fly back with a yelp. He fell onto his back, holding his face in apparent pain. Then, Muruchi leapt up onto the warrior, and lunged forward, trying to take a bite out of the alien defender. Shodai dodged this way and that, evading the jaws. Then, three nova bombs detonated against Muruchi's back. The attack made it scream in surprise, and it lifted itself, and faced the arwings. Shodai rolled out form under it, and turned to face the monster, who fired its heat-beam again at the team. Star Fox nimbly dodged it, while put Muruchi in an arm-bar, forcing the beast to its knees. Shodai delivered several quick chops to its head, before delivering a swift kick to its skull, making it fallback. Muruchi howled in pain, and rose up in a fury. It fired the heat-beam at Shodai, who promptly brought up his light-barrier, and the beam was deflected. Shodai jumped up, and came back down in a jump kick, sending Muruchi to the ground. Muruchi stood back up, and Shodai grabbed one of its fins, and hip-tossed it into another ruined building. He did the same thing three times. When Muruchi rose, it was reeling, and Shodai's warning light was starting to flash red. Then, Shodai released his shredding halo at the monster, severing its head from the neck. The head fell, and the corpse took two steps forward before falling face-first. It dissolved into a type of foam, and then disappeared. Satisfied, Shodai looked up, and gave a shout, flying into the sky, with the rest of the team following. The stealth fighters decided it would be best to leave as well, not wanting to contend with both the giant, and the Star Fox team at the same time. Meanwhile, in his saucer, the robed figure was still smiling, even though he lost another monster, this was with a purpose. He stored the battle as data, and turned to his panel. He opened it, and took out a red capsule. In it, he could see the outline of a very familiar figure, and it glowed as the data entered it. He saw this, and he smiled broadly.


	4. Shodai's Memories

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 4

Shodai's Memories

"What the heck, man! You mind tellin' me why you just tore half of the town apart?" Falco almost shouted. The team was gathered in the conference room, going over the past events. Falco was the most displeased.

"I didn't destroy the town, Falco. Muruchi had already done that itself." the other red vulpine stated plainly. Steven, aka Shodai, was standing in front of Falco, while the avian vented his rage at him. Falco just went on.

"It didn't seem that way to me, buddy! In fact, I saw you _throw _Muchichi, or whatever the heck its name is, into a building!" Falco argued.

"That's enough, Falco!" Krystal intervened. Falco could only look at her, then replied.

"Of course! Whenever something that involves him happens, _you_ come to his rescue, don't you?" Falco almost shouted.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she challenged.

"It's so obvious, Krys! You have a crush on him, don't you?" he pressed. Krystal could only look at him as if he's lost his mind, while the others stared at them, including Steven. After being on the team for only a short time, she had already begun to dislike Falco, especially now. "It's written all over your pretty little face. Don't think Fox is good enough, so you decide to get it on with the alien freak over there!" She balled up her fist, and rammed it into the bird's right eye. The avian stumbled back, and collapsed in a heap. Krystal stood over him, panting heavily, feeling rage and embarrassment wash over her. She looked at everyone in the room, Fox giving her a quizzical look, while Steven looked sympathetic. She ran out of the room, with both foxes following behind her.

"Krystal!" Steven called out. She ignored it.

"Krystal, wait!" Fox tried. She ignored this one. When they reached her, she had already locked herself in her room. Fox and Steven looked at eachother, then at the shut door in front of them. On the inside, the blue vixen tried to use her meditation training to calm her mind. However, she found it increasingly difficult. It always went back to Steven. No matter how hard she tried, she could not get him off of her mind. She felt like this with Fox McCloud, when she was taken aboard the Great Fox for the first time. That was a couple of months ago, right after he had saved her from Andross. Now, along comes Shodai, who has taken the alias of Steven. He's not really an anthropomorph like her, but he resembles one so much. And, she felt his heart; strong, yet kind, resilient, yet gentle as well. Although, he doesn't know it yet, and she feels that she can bring it out if him yet. 'My God. Is Falco right? Am I having feelings for Steven now?' she wonders, as the thought hit her.

Outside of her door, Fox and Steven waited for the blue vixen to emerge. Fox had his back to the wall on the left, while Steven hung his head on the wall to the right. "Is there something between you two?" Steven asked. Fox looked at the Ultra/Anthro, a quizzical look on his face.

"What?" he asked.

"Is there something between you?" Steven asked again, this time looking at Fox. The aforementioned vulpine looked away, un-able to answer that question. He had only known her for a couple of months, and already he had grown rather fond of her. More than that, he felt something deep inside for her. Something that, he had not felt before.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked, looking at the ground.

"Because, if there is something between you, then I want to preserve it." Steven replied.

"Why?"

"I cannot get involved with her. Don't get me wrong, she's beautiful, but I cannot have a relationship with her, on any level. After my mission is completed here, I will have to report back to M78, and you people will probably never see me again. If we start a relationship now, it could destroy both of us." Fox merely looked at the young looking vulpine, taking in everything that he was saying. Steven looked at the floor as well, a discouraged look on his vulpine features. Fox felt a little sorry for him, since he could not have a relationship of his own, outside of acquaintance.

"It doesn't have to be like that. You can still maintain a friendship with her." Fox replied finally.

"Yes it does. I made, and learned from, that mistake two years ago."

"What happened?" he asked.

"I fought one of my hardest battles yet, and it left a close friend of mine in dire jeopardy. It was through sheer luck that my superior was close by, otherwise, both of us would probably have died." Steven replied sullenly. Fox looked at the young-looking vulpine, feeling sympathetic. Then, Steven walked off to his room, leaving Fox alone in the hallway. When the Ultra/anthro entered his room, he sat on his bed, and pulled out his beta-capsule, turning the object over in his hands. He remembers the first time that he had come in contact with the human race, albeit by an unfortunate accident.

Two years ago: Shodai was chasing a blue orb through space. The orb contained an entity of pure evil, and it would cause much destruction if it landed on an unsuspecting planet. His worst fears were realized, when the orb entered the atmosphere of a blue and green world. He chased the orb to the upper atmosphere of Earth, and that was when he lost the blue orb, and found Shin Hayata. A member of the Special Search and Science Party, Shin Hayata was flying his air-craft in patrol of the Earth. Then, Shodai's travel sphere collided with Hayata's ship, and both crashed into the Japanese mountains. Grieved by the life he had taken, he made the decision of giving the dying man his life, merging the two of them into one entity. From then on, they would have many adventures that would be remembered by the world over. They would even be known on his homeworld of M78, a good distance away.

He was reminiscing, when a knock on his door sounded. Shodai placed his beta-capsule on the night-stand, and answered the door. He was surprised to see Krystal standing there.

"Hello, Steven. May I come in?" she asked.

"Uh, sure." Steven replied, not sure how to react to this situation. Krystal walked in, and sat down on his bed.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked.

"I just wanted to talk to you."

"About what?"

"I heard what you were talking about with Fox. About, how you cannot have a relationship with me." she said, rather sadly. Steven stiffened, and looked deflated. He replied.

"It's true. Once my mission here has been completed, I will go back to M78 for my next assignment. Most likely, to some far off corner in the universe, away from all of this."

"But why? Why so distant?"

"Because, yours is a race that is advanced enough to handle most kinds of adversities. Mine race is one that protects those that cannot protect themselves. The sole reason why I am here, is because this particular threat is one that you, in all likelihood, cannot repel on your own."

"So, you're just here, to do your job, and nothing else. Not to meet new people, not to experience new things, just to do your duty, and move on." she stated plainly.

"Yes."

"What kind of a life is that? One where, you must forever serve and protect people that you don't even know, and not know them. Protect them, and then just leave after the job is done. How can you lead that?" she asked.

"Because if I get too involved, people will get hurt, even die." Steven said plainly. Krystal looked at him, then noticed the object on his nightstand. She went over, and picked it up.

"What is this?" she asked, inspecting the capsule in her hands.

"My beta-capsule." Steven replied.

"Your what?" she asked.

"It's what allows me to transform. In order for me to blend in, I not only have to change my appearance, but my body as a whole as well. That item that you are holding, holds all of my power and experience." He said this, and Krystal continued to stare at the capsule.

"You mean that, your essence is inside this?" she asked.

"In layman's terms, yes. Not only that, but it holds my memories as well."

"Really? You mean, everything that you have ever done, is inside this as well." she said, looking at the twelve-inch long capsule, wondering how something so small could hold so much. Steven came up behind her, and placed his hands under hers, closing them over the capsule.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Would you like to see, some of my memories?" he asked. Krystal looked down at her closed hands, and thought for a moment.

"What happened to, you not being able to have a relationship with me?" she asked, looking his way, and grinning. Steven shrugged. "Okay then, yes. I would like to know you just a bit better." Just then, light swirled out of the capsule, and enveloped them both. Krystal gasped in surprise as the light covered them. She looked around, this way and that, but the light was everywhere. The room, Great Fox, even space itself seemed to have fallen out of existence, replaced by the light. She felt behind, and noticed that Steven was not there anymore. Then, she saw a figure walking toward her, and the figure became Steven, except for one main thing; he was entirely nude. Krystal looked at him, and giggled slightly at him.

"What are you laughing at?" he asked.

"You. You're completely unclothed." she said, through her hands that were trying to cover her laughter.

"Unclothed women shouldn't throw stones." Steven said, a smirk of his own evident on his face. Krystal looked puzzled by this, but when she looked down, she saw what he meant; all of her own clothing was gone as well. Blushing brightly, she tried to cover herself with her hands, while Steven hid his smirk.

"You pervert! Stop looking at me!" she shouted in an angry embarrassed tone. Steven shook his head.

"Sorry, but here, only our true selves can be maintained."

"True selves? But you said that, you didn't look like that. What happened to your Ultra form?" Steven smiled, and his form seemed to glow with a bright crimson luminescence. Then, his form swelled to at least fourty feet, and standing over her, was Shodai's true form. The Ultra looked down at the vixen while she stared up at him as he knelt down. His glowing yellow eyes showing the warrior inside of him. Then, Krystal felt the sensation of something entering her mind, like a clairvoyance of some sort. The kind of thing that she had not experienced since Cerinia was destroyed. Then, she felt his memories; his training, his early days as a rookie warrior, and the time he spent on Earth, defending it from all sort of threats, both foreign and domestic. His adventures were known far and wide. All of his exploits with the "Special Science Search Party, also known as the Science Patrol." Krystal said aloud. "You merged with a human named Shin Hayata, after you crashed into him, nearly ending his life. After that, you protected the Earth from all sorts of adversaries and threats, making you famous all over the world. However, at the end, you were…..beaten, by a creature named Zetton. I remember all of that."

"Of course. I'm a telepath, like you." Shodai said, his voice echoing through the void. Krystal felt all of this, and decided to open up herself. She showed him her own memories. About her life happily spent on her homeworld of Cerinia, until an unknown calamity befell it. She was nineteen when the planet was destroyed, reduced to nothing more than a barren rock in space. Since then, she has been trying to find the reason why it was destroyed. However, her plans were halted on Sauria, when she was captured by

"Andross." Shodai said. Krystal felt herself gasp. "Andross captured you, and placed you in a crystal. There, he was going to use you to channel the Krazoa's power to resurrect himself. That's when you first met Fox. And, that's when you joined his team, and developed feelings for him." All of a sudden, the void fell away to Steven's room on the Great Fox. Krystal pulled away, and was relieved to find herself fully clothed again. She looked back at Steven, the Ultra/vulpine sitting in his bed, looking discouraged. She knew the reason why.

"You feel as though you cannot find your soul mate, the one person in your life who truly matters. That's part of the reason why you do not want a relationship with me, and why you want to leave as soon as possible; you envy us." she said. Shodai said nothing. "You feel that, no matter how hard you try, you cannot find the one you love." She moved closer to him, and brought up his face to meet hers, with her looking down at him. "You will find her. If I can, then so can you. You just have to look for her." Steven pulled out of her hands, and looked away.

"I'm afraid that it is not that simple." he said, sounding a little sad. "What you and Fox have, is something that I will never know, what I can never have. You are luckier than you know." Krystal won't give up. She helped him this far, and he has done so much for them already.

"Why do you believe so strongly about that. You act as though you have been searching for love for over a millennium." she said, almost amused. Steven looked up, and replied. "Funny you should say that. Any way, you're a little off base." Krystal tilted her head to the side, wondering what it was that he meant.

"It's been more than five thousand years since I tried to find love." Krystal's jaw dropped when she heard him.

"F-five thousand….years? How old are you?" she asked.

"Twenty thousand years old." he replied plainly. Krystal couldn't believe her ears. The person sitting before her, was old enough to have seen the birth and downfall of her planet's civilization! She was rooted to the spot. To have lived that long, to have seen all of the things that he has, that his race has. And yet, he has never found love. She started to wonder, if she could help him. She simply stared at him for the longest time. Steven decided to break the silence. "Don't tell anyone what you have seen or heard here. They would probably think that you have gone mad." Krystal could only nod in agreement before leaving the room, and leaving Steven alone. The blue-furred vixen made her way to her room, with the thoughts racing through her mind.

'I can't believe it. Twenty thousand years old! How can anyone live to be that long? What all does he know, I wonder? What sort of things has he seen over the course of millenniums, over the course of the never-ending, constantly changing universe? He probably knows what happened to my planet, Cerinia. If he does, I want to know about it.' Krystal went to bed, her head heavy with these thoughts. It was some time before she found sleep, however un-blissful it was.


	5. Cornerian Engagement

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 5

Cornerian Engagement

The figure sat in his chair, holding the capsule that held a tiny figure. It was dimly lit in the room where he sat at the controls for his ship. The robed figure sat there, holding the figure in his hand, occasionally turning it over, lost in thought. He remembers how he and his race tried to take the planet Earth but were stopped, not once, but twice by the same alien warrior from M78. He seethed at the memory. The Ultra thought that they were all destroyed, but at least one of them survived, and was hell-bent on one thing. The word coursed through his alien mind, as he clenched the capsule in a gloved fist; vengeance.

In the Great Fox, that was in orbit around the planet Corneria. Steven, aka Shodai, was in his quarters, looking over the planet. He sees that it bears an almost uncanny resemblance to a certain planet that he had visited some time ago. He smiles at the thought, and wonders how his old friend is doing. It has at least been two years since he has last visited the world, however, he knows that it is in good hands. The humans are very resourceful, and the present Garrison member keeping watch was a capable warrior. After all, he trained alongside him. There was a soft knock at his door, and he told the person to enter. He was surprised to see Fox come in, half-expecting it to be Krystal. The vulpine came in, looking rather concerned. "Something I can help you with, Fox?"

"It's about Falco. His outburst is not entirely un-justified."

"I know. He's angry at the destruction that I and Muruchi had caused on Zoness."

"Right. Defeating the enemy is important, but so is preserving the populace. Probably more so in this case. I'm not sure how you did things on the other worlds that you visited, but if that is how you conduct your duties, then I suggest that you change your strategy, and quick, before more people get hurt."

"Look, Fox, I know what it is that you are trying to say, but believe me, sometimes there is no other way. Sometimes, I have to grow to my giant form to handle a problem, and sometimes, people do get hurt. If there was any other way around my last engagement, any way at all, I would have done it. But, like any war, there are always casualties, no matter how hard you tried to avoid it. You should know that, as well as I do." Steven cast a sad glance to Fox, who saw the tire and sorrow in his expression. He has seen death, and didn't need to be reminded about it.

"Right, just be more careful. That's all I'm saying." Fox left the Ultra/vulpine to stare out of the window, overlooking the planet. And once again, Steven/Shodai was lost in thought.

Fox was walking down the hallway, when he bumped into the blue-feathered avian. The bird had a dour look about him, and glanced up at Fox. "I talked to Steven. He knows about the-"

"You talked to him. You think that will matter to him? He can do anything that he wants, Fox! He made us all look like a bunch of rank amateurs! When he took on both the Shogun, _and_ Oikonny's flagship, he came out on top. And us? We were next to helpless! Talked to him. Why don't you just worship him, while you're at it?" the avian shouted. He stormed past the dumbfounded vulpine, and to his quarters. Krystal popped out of her room, brushing her cobalt blue hair with her brush.

"What's wrong with Falco?" she asked, still brushing.

"Nothing. Just venting his frustration, per usual." Fox replied.

"Sounded like he was venting it about Steven." the blue-furred vixen replied. Fox only shrugged. "Well, I can understand how he can feel. After all, Steven is of a race that is superior to ours, with abilities that we can only dream of."

"How'd you hear that?" Fox asked. Krystal merely tapped the side of her head, smiling slightly. Fox nodded in understanding. She has been on the team for three months, and her telepathy was still something that needed some getting used to. "Either way, you are right about that. And so is Falco. He has to be more careful, while engaging the enemy in a crowded area. Maybe Falco put it the wrong way, but the point is clear."

"And Steven knows it. If there was any other way around, he would've sought it out." Just as she was done saying it, Fox chuckled slightly at the vixen's statement. "What's so funny?" she asked.

"That's almost word for word of what our new friend said." he said, still smiling. Krystal returned it.

"Well, it's the truth, isn't it?" she asked. Krystal turned back to her room. Fox returned to the command head, with Peppy and Slippy waiting for him. The wizened hare looked back, as did the amphibian. "Any word yet from the General?" Fox asked.

"Not yet, Fox. Seems as though they were unsuccessful in finding the location of Oikonny, or the remainder of his fleet."

''Remainder', that's a laugh. We only dented the armada as a whole. He still has plenty of ships left.' Fox thought darkly. "Does he still want us on alert?"

"He says that we can stand-down for now, but to be ready at a moment's notice."

"Of course he does." Fox said to himself."

"I don't see why we don't just hunt them down, like before. We dealt with them in the past." Slippy mused.

"That was years ago, Slippy. Oikonny has more advanced weapons and technology on his side." Peppy reminded him.

"So? We have Steven on ours." Slippy retorted. Fox looked up slightly, then brought his head down on his fists again, thinking about the Ultra. He remembers how he beat the new Shogun, and the flagship that Oikonny was on. Then, Falco's words rang through his skull; 'He made us all look like a bunch of rank amateurs. We were next to helpless!'

"Why don't we let him take care of our problem for us, then?" Fox said to himself, so the two Lylat's won't hear him.

Venom: Oikonny was residing in his chambers in his base. After the death of his uncle, the ape left the Star Wolf team, whom he had sought employment with to serve his uncle, to rebuild his uncle's empire. When he had heard that Andross was killed, yet again, by Fox above Sauria, he took it upon himself to rebuild everything in his uncle's name. and, with the help of his mysterious benefactor, he will accomplish just that, starting with the removal of the same team that killed Andross. He sat in his 'throne', which was no more than a highly decorated lounge chair with ape heads on the arm-rests, as he waited for word from his associate. He asked him why he sent his fighters out to do some destruction, when the monster that was supposed to hold the team off, would do the destruction anyway. Why did he have him waste his time, and his personnel's? He sent the message for an explanation three hours ago, and was waiting ever since. When the ape-officer came in through the door, the baboon looked up, expectantly. The ape bowed before Andrew, and handed the PAD to him. The baboon looked over the message on the PAD, and curtly handed it back to the officer. The ape bowed again, and hurriedly ran out of the room. Andrew got up out of his seat, and stormed to the window, overlooking the barren landscape. The Cornerian government were unable to find the reason why Andross was able to not only survive the hostile environment, but also to amass an army and nearly take over the Lylat System. If they had thought to look beneath the surface, rather than just what was on top, they would have found the answer. The natives of the planet, consisting of reptilian anthros, saw that their planet was changing from being a life-supporting world, to a desolate wasteland. To survive, they had to go underground, and rebuild the civilization from there. When Andross had arrived, the reptilians were already in their third century of dwelling underground. The ape proposed the idea of rising out of the ground, and taking the Lylat system for themselves. So, using the natives' own advanced technology, Andross quickly built his army, and became ruler of the planet. When the Star Fox team, headed by the late James McCloud, Fox's father, came to the planet to investigate strange signals coming from there, Andross had hired the member Pigma Dengar into his thrall, and betrayed the team. James met his end, but Peppy Hare survived to tell his Fox McCloud about his father. Some time after that, with his army built up, Andross declared war on the Lylat System, and with the Star Wolf team by his side, he was practically on the verge of becoming emperor. However, the Star Fox team managed to stop him. Immediately after that, Andrew left the team, and sought to rebuild his uncle's empire, in his own image. This time, with weapons and technology that was even more advanced than before. He smiled at the thought of crushing them. Then, along comes an unexpected surprise; an alien being looking for refuge from another alien. He was about to turn him away, when he showed him something very interesting, in the form of 'capsule-monsters', he calls them. The alien being said that if he helped him with a certain problem, he would help him achieve his goal. However, he is starting to wonder when he will hold up his end of the bargain. The message he had received, tells him that he will receive a transmission from him in a few minutes. Then, the monitor on the left wall of his room flickered to life, and the cloaked figure took up the screen.

"You seem to think that I owe you some explanation for my actions." he said. Oikonny nodded.

"You had me send out my fighters on a fool's errand. You said to send them to destroy the city on Zoness, while your monster held off the team and the alien. Well, the town was already destroyed, thanks to your monster!"

"Perhaps, I should explain myself." the figure said, bowing slightly. "What I really wanted, was for your fighters to gain footage of the battle between Muruchi, and the Ultra. If I had told you otherwise, I was afraid that you would see this as a fool's errand."

"Well, I'll accept that. Only, why do you need footage of the Ultra beating the daylights out of your pet monster?" Oikonny asked.

"Just as you had an ultimate weapon, I have mine. I need as much data on him as possible, for the only weapon that was able to defeat him in the past."

"You mean, you have something that can repel him already? Then why don't you use it?"

"It is not ready yet. I need more data, to activate him. Once he is fully prepared, he will take care of both of our problems. He will defeat the Ultra, and the Star Fox team, while we kick back and watch the show. I will be rid of a major thorn in my side, and you will have your precious empire under your heel."

"You said that he was defeated before. What defeated your secret weapon?" Oikonny asked.

"Something that is very far away from here, at least several galaxies away from here, completely unknown, except only to me, and I need it to keep him under control."

"What about the Ultra, does he know?"

"Unlikely. He was on death's door, when the being that defeated him had fallen. No, he doesn't know how to defeat him, and he never will, in good time." Oikonny seemed to muse this over, then finally said something.

"Do you need me for anything else for the time being?"

"No, not yet. I know that your armada has taken some damage from its last engagement with the Cornerian Army, Star Fox, and the Ultra. We will need your armada in top condition, if we are to succeed with our plan. For now, repair and replace all the ships you need to. I, however, must continue with my research." With that, the figure signed off, leaving the screen blank. Oikonny heaved a sigh, and went out of his room, to one of the large factories underground to oversee the reconstruction of the lost fighters and cruisers.

On another part of Venom: The robed figure sat in his chair, and shook his cloaked head after signing off with the baboon. He was frustrated with the ape, but could understand why he would want to question him. He may have a vast supply of resources, but it's not bottomless. Just then, he felt a presence, and smiled to himself. "I was wondering when you would skulk into here, my friend." The cloaked figure turned in the chair, and the chair swiveled around to have the cloaked figure face the person standing before him. The person, if indeed he could be called that, was at least six feet tall, black and silver with tufts of fur or hair around the neck and wrists, with a bulbous head with a single long antennae that drooped over the side of the head. Its eyes were placed on the sides of the head, with the right eye in the top corner, and the left eye in the lower part of the head. It had no mouth, no other facial features other than the grotesquely shaped head and eyes. "Kemur, my faithful servant. I need you to track down someone for me."

"The Ultra?" it asked, its voice distorted.

"Exactly. I need to know whether or not he has taken a host, or made his own disguise, as well as all whom he has associated himself with."

"You seem rather…nervous about something, or anxious, sir."

"Not anxious, my friend. Rather, I'm irritated at the sudden turn of events. If only I didn't have the blasted Ultra on my tail, I wouldn't have to rely on a stinking ape for assistance!" the cloaked figure spat. Then, he turned to the console that was behind him, and pressed a series of commands. In seconds, a holographic image of a planet materialized in front of Kumul. "Head for this planet, Corneria, and find our adversary. Then, report back to me."

"What if I have to tangle with him?" Kemur asked.

"If you have to, at least try to escape from him. You are far too valuable to me to have to lose you in such a fashion." the figure replied. Kemur bowed, and left the circular room. It got into its personal craft in the hangar of the ship that it traveled in with its master. The craft exited the ship, and streaked out into space, and headed for Corneria. The small craft was cloaked, unseen by the Lylatian technology. It landed on the planet undetected, or rather, almost undetected.

On Great Fox: Steven felt a strange sensation. It was a feeling he hasn't felt since his time on Earth. He stiffened when he felt it, and almost froze completely. That's when he saw something that looked like a shooting star head for the surface of the planet. He hurriedly made his way to the hangar, where the arwings are docked, ready at a moment's notice. Steven jumped into his own fighter, and launched out of the hangar. He made a beeline for the planet's surface, where he'd figured where the craft landed. However, his actions did not go unnoticed. In the command bridge, Peppy noticed the launch taking place on his console. "Hey, Fox. Take a look at this." Fox McCloud got up from his seat, and walked over to the console that Peppy sat. In it, was a monitor, with Steven getting in his arwing, and launching out of the hangar. He swore under his breath, and headed for the door. "Should I let everyone else know?" he asked.

"No. I'll handle this myself." Fox answered hurriedly. He jogged to the hangar, and jumped into his arwing fighter. He rocketed out of the hangar, and was going after Steven whom, Ultra or no, was probably going to have his neck wringed for this kind of stunt.

After Fox entered the atmosphere, he turned on the IFF beacon, to let the defenses know that he was a friendly craft. He followed the automatic signal that Steven's own arwing gave off to, his dismay, Corneria City. After flying over the city, he saw the fighter on a landing pad near the outskirts of the city. He touched down, and exited the fighter. He walked over to Steven's fighter, and saw that it was empty, not that he wasn't counting on it, but he held a little hope that he would remain here. Now, he'll have to find him the old-fashioned way.

Steven made his way around the docking port. After landing his arwing in the closest vicinity to the craft that he sensed, he also picked up something else, another arwing headed right for him. Much to his regret, it looks like one of the team members, most likely Fox himself, had followed him. He'll have to find the alien, and evade Fox as well, to avoid any awkward moments. The port was busy, filled with anthros of all sorts going to and fro about their daily business. Steven was thankful for his disguise right now, taking the form of an anthropomorphic fox, and dressed as they are. Steven relied on his Ultra-senses to guide him through the crowd, and to the alien presence. After exiting the port, he followed his senses to the alien being. He winded down the streets and sidewalks, moving past several different animals as he did so. He made a mental note to better observe these people when not under pressing conditions. After several twists and turns through the heart of the city, he felt like he was getting close. The people of the city were busy going to and fro on their daily business to really bother with him. And those that did glance at him, did so probably because he bumped into them while he was hurrying along. Then, he entered a, what seemed to be, an derelict building that was condemned. He went in, the sensation feeling the strongest here. The entrance was filled with dust and cobwebs, a sign that the building had not been used in a long while. When he opened the door, he was met with a puff of dust that he waved away from his muzzle. He walked in, blaster drawn, and beta-capsule held at the ready. Steven could feel the presence, but could not pinpoint the location. He failed to notice movement coming from above him, as a shadowed figure moved to another room in the hall above him. The room that Steven was in now looked like a lobby of some sort. He guessed that this derelict was either a hotel or apartment at one point in time. He walked slowly and purposefully, his blaster held at the low ready with the beta-capsule held at his heart. He looked this way and that, but not really relying on his other senses as he was on his Ultra-sense, other-wise he would've seen the form tackle his from behind. He felt something slam into him from behind him, and tackle him to the ground. He dropped his blaster, but held firm onto his capsule. It was hard to see in the dimness, but he kicked the form off of him, and was prepared to convert to his Ultra form, when he saw who it was in the thin rays of sunlight that sliced through the boarded windows. "Fox?" he almost shouted.

"You got one hell of a nerve pulling that crap back there." Fox said, his lip curled up. His pointed ears were back, and he was glaring at the alien wearing a fox-skin. "You have exactly ten seconds to get your butt out of here, or I will kick you all the way back to the Great Fox." he warned. Steven sighed, and shook his head.

"Fox, if anyone should not be here, it's you. There's someone here, someone who could very well bring this whole dump down around our ears. Please, let me do, my duty."

"No way. You joined the team, that means that you take orders from me, got it? So I say that you get fuzzy rear in gear, now!" the vulpine shouted. Then, as if from nowhere and everywhere, laughter was heard. Then, a distorted voice followed, speaking in an alien language that Fox didn't know.

"Well, well, Ultra. I didn't know that you had an interest in pets." Steven was quick to reply. "Show yourself, invader. I demand that you make your presence known!" Steven replied, in the same alien language. Then, something dropped down from above, and landed in front of them. That same something stood up, and was slightly taller than both of them were. Then, Kemur-Seijin made itself known. Steven's expression hardened when he saw it, but Fox's face went slack with shock. In all of his years, he has never seen anything as grotesque, except maybe out of a twisted horror flick. The alien laughed again, and pointed at Steven.

"So, this is the form that you have decided to hide yourself in. You decided not to take a host this time, but opted to make your own. How like your kind. You, always hiding in the shadows, away from the eyes of the ones that you foolishly protect. Imagine their expressions, if they knew what it was that you truly are."

"This one already knows my true self, as do a few others. I only hide myself so as not to cause a panic among the locals. However, I think that people would like my natural looks, rather than yours." Steven retorted in the alien language. Fox looked back and forth, confusion written all over his face. 'What the heck are these two talking about? They act as though I don't exist.' Fox thought. As if sensing his thoughts, one of Kemur's eyes swiveled in its socket, and focused on the vulpine. Fox felt a twinge of fear and disgust when he saw the eye move independently from the other one, even if it was on a different part of the head than the other one. Then, the alien seemed to mention him, at least it did to Fox.

"It seems that your pet would like to be included in on our conversation." Kemur said, pointing to Fox. Steven looked back, then back to Kumul.

"Why not. It concerns him, and his race, as well." Steven replied in perfect Cornerian. Kumul laughed in response.

"Tell me, little thing, has he told you about his race yet?" Kemur asked Fox.

"Yes he has, and I'm not a 'Little thing'. My name is Fox McCloud, leader of the Star Fox team." Steven winced when he told him that, and Kemur chuckled when he heard this.

"Is this so? You have associated yourself with these people then?" Kemur asked Steven. Fox answered for him.

"He has. He has joined my team, to stop you."

"Shuddup, you idiot!" Steven hissed. "DO you want to get yourself and the whole team killed?" Fox gave him a curious look, then turned back to Kumul.

"You should listen to your better, little thing. After all, you have just signed your team's death warrants." Kemur was just preparing to leave, when Steven sprang upon him. He tackled the alien to the ground, and was mounted on top of him. He was delivering two punches to its head, and he was knocked off, and thrown into the wall, to the other side of the room. Kumul got up, and dusted itself off. Fox turned to Kemur, and pulled his blaster out. "Oh, please." Kemur replied when he saw the weapon. Fox fired several shots at the alien, only to have the emerald bolts bounce off of an unseen barrier. "You know, in all honesty, I was expecting more." Fox looked dumbly at his weapon, then at Kemur. "Why don't you be a good little thing, and obey your masters." At that moment, Kemur raised a hand at Fox, and the vulpine winced in pain, and grabbed his skull in both paws. It felt like something was digging its way into the very core of his brain, and it did not go gently either. Fox groaned in pain, as the agony intensified. He was brought to his knees, as the alien made his way to him. "Now, little thing, play dead." Kemur clenched his hand into a fist, and the pain in Fox's head just increased to unbearable levels. He screamed in agony, and was about to lose consciousness, when he heard a loud "SHUWATCH!", and saw a red and silver body slam itself into Kemur, sending the alien shouting through a wall, and into the next room. Then, Shodai looked down at Fox, who was still holding his skull in apparent pain, the after-affects of Kemur's mind-raping still sharp. Shodai placed a gentle hand on Fox's head, and the pain in the vulpine's skull evaporated into nothingness. Fox looked up, and into the silver helmet-like face of the Ultra. Shodai offered his hand, and Fox accepted it, and was helped up to his feet. He looked into the glowing oval eyes of the newest member of his team, and looked away. He felt what it was that Falco was feeling. He felt powerless, next to him. His mind was being raped by an alien, and he was powerless, and it took the new-guy to save him. Shodai was feeling this from him, and placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder, slightly squeezing it. Fox looked up, back into the shining eyes of the alien. He tried to see what it was that Krystal saw. Trying, and ultimately failing. "I know what it is that you are feeling." Shodai said, in his distorted voice.

"Of course you do. You have powers beyond ours." Fox said, downtrodden. He looked up, looking tired. "How can we even begin to compare to you? You're a super being with powers that I can only dream of, and I'm just a…mercenary for hire." Shodai replied with something that he didn't expect.

"Sometimes, it's the mercenaries for hire that are often the greatest heroes." Fox looked at the alien warrior with a puzzled expression. If he could, Shodai would be smiling to himself. Then, he felt a sensation in the back of his head. He faced the hole in the wall that he sent Kumul through, and felt it. "GET DOWN!" he yelled, throwing Fox to the ground. What followed, were several red blasts of energy that sent the Ultra stumbling back with every hit that they made. Then, Kemur stumbled out of the hole, his arm raised at the Ultra, red blasts of energy shooting out of his hand. Shodai was blocking with his arms, but that can only last for so long. Shodai's words were still ringing in Fox's pointed ears, and he had his blaster set on the lowest setting when he took on Kemur earlier.

"I was hoping for more from you, Garrison Member. Especially from the one who has staved off the countless attempts by me and my brethren to take over a certain blue and green world, not four galaxies away from here." Kemur said, still blasting the Ultra. Shodai still had his guard up, but each blast was making him stumble back even further. He didn't know how much longer he could keep this up.

"Hey, UGLY!" came a shout. Both aliens turned, and Kemur was met with a bright red bolt of energy to its 'face', sending it clear to the wall on the other side of the lobby. It left a large imprint on where it landed, and slumped to the floor. Shodai was on his knees, his guard still up. He looked up, and saw Fox aiming his blaster at the alien.

'Just like a certain race that I associated myself with some time ago,' he thought amusingly.

"You know, in all honesty, I was expecting more…'little thing'." Fox said, snarling. Shodai stood up next to the vulpine, and Fox looked back at the alien warrior. Shodai nodded at him, and the vulpine returned it. Kemur stumbled to its feet, and held a part of its head that was smoking and leaking a green fluid. Then, it ran out of the building, with the duo right behind him. Kemur ran into the open air, and in clear view of the populace. People stopped and stared at him, some even gasped in shock and horror at what they saw. Kemur looked this way and that, then raised a hand, and shot more of its energy blasts at the crowd. The people screamed, and got out of the way of the blasts as they connected with the surrounding area; vehicles, pavement, buildings. Soon, the blasts left everything scarred. Then, Kemur turned to face the pair coming after him. He growled at them, and got into a combat stance. Shodai did like-wise, and prepared for the worst, for he knows that there is nothing more dangerous than a cornered, wounded animal. Fox raised his blaster, but Shodai lowered it. Fox gave him a questioning look, and the red and silver alien gestured to the panicked people. He understood, and stepped back. The two aliens circled eachother, each one preparing for the other to make a move. Kemur was the first one to act. The alien leapt up, and performed a drop-kick, that Shodai blocked and countered by grabbing its legs, and swinging him around a few times, before sending him flying into a wrecked car. The alien recovered, and charged at the red and silver warrior. Both locked hands, and Kemur kicked Shodai in the ribs, twice, and threw him to the ground. Shodai recovered by rolling, getting to a standing position, and got back into his combat stance. He leapt at Kemur, and sent a flying punch to its head, making it fall back. Shodai dragged it to its feet, and started to pound its 'face' in with his fists. Then, he shoulder tossed him into a building, the alien leaving a large imprint in the brickwork. Kemur got to its feet, and fired more of its red energy blasts. Shodai erected his light barrier, which deflected the blasts. The red and silver alien lowered the barrier when Kemur was done firing, and sent two shredding halos its way. Kemur leapt behind a hover-car, and the halos shredded through the vehicle like melting butter, and kept going to the building behind, slicing through anything in its path. Kemur then picked up one of the large, sliced-off chunks of the vehicle, hoisting the piece over its head, and threw it at the Ultra. Shodai evaded the missile with ease, then evaded the another, and another, and another. Then, Shodai leapt up, and performed a flying kick. Kemur evaded the attack, and a crater was left in the kick's wake. Kemur swung with its fists, and Shodai blocked them. The two battled back and forth, becoming a blur of kicks, punches, and blows. Each attack was countered, blocked, or evaded. The duel took place back out in the open. Kemur performed a side-kick, that Shodai caught. Then, the red and silver alien slammed his elbow down on the limb, making Kemur groan in pain. Then, he slugged Kemur in the stomach, making it double back, clutching it in pain. Then, its 'face' was met with a spin-kick that sent it rolling on the ground. Kemur came up, kneeling on a knee, but keeping its fists up as Shodai approached it. It saw movement from behind, and one of its eyes swiveled back to see a frightened little girl husky staring at it. Kemur chuckled in evil delight. It let loose another of its red energy blasts, this one aimed at the ground in front of Shodai. It exploded on contact, and threw up dust and debris. The Ultra shielded his eyes, and when he lowered his arms, what he saw made his heart sink; Kemur was holding a very frightened anthro girl close to it, its crimson-glowing hand mere inches from her face. Kemur laughed at Shodai.

"What now, Shodai? It seems that I have the advantage, now." it said, victory sounding in its voice. The girl casts a very frightened look at the red and silver alien, who freezes in his tracks. Shodai curses mentally, and lowers his guard.

"Fine. You win Kemur. Just let the girl go." Shodai says, defeat showing in his voice.

"Ohhhh, no. As soon as I do that, you'll be after me. No, I think this little girl and I shall get better acquainted. Who knows, we might become BFFs." Tears were already streaming down her canine face, dropping onto her blue dress. Shodai felt powerless as Kemur began to step back. Then, Shodai sees something that makes him smile on the inside. Shodai takes a step toward Kemur and the girl, and just as soon as he does, Kemur feels a searing pain erupt in the back of its skull. It howls in pain, and lets the girl go. The husky runs behind the red and silver alien, while Shodai shields her. Kemur whirls around, and sees Fox McCloud aiming his blaster at him fifty yards away. He lowers the weapon, and salutes Kemur with it, smirking. Kemur growls, and whirls on the Ultra. Then, Shodai pushes the girl gently away from him, and places his arms in a cross-shape. Immediately after, the blue/white Spacium beam erupts from his hand, and connects with Kemur's shoulder as it tries to avoid the beam. It howls in agony, and drops to his knees, clutching his right shoulder as green blood oozes from its fingers. Shodai drops his pose, and glares at the bleeding alien, the girl looking at it from behind the red and silver alien warrior. Kemur unsteadily got up on its feet, and pointed at Shodai. "You…win for now…Garrison Member. But, I will make up for this disgrace. I know who you are. And for this insult, I will make you and your furry friends die a horribly agonizing death! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Then, it thrusted its fists to the ground, and two more red blasts of energy shot out of its fists, and exploded against the ground, kicking up dust, smoke, and debris. Seconds later, Fox came running through the dust and smoke.

"He's gone!" he says to Shodai, who merely nods.

"We will see it again." he replies. He looks down at the husky girl clutching his leg. If he could, he would be smiling at her. He kneels down to her eye-level, and speaks as softly as he can. "What is your name?" he asks.

"S-s-Samantha." the husky replies, nervously. Shodai chuckles, and tussle's the girl's grey hair.

"Where are your parents at?" he asks. Samantha points to her left/Shodai's right, and looks that way at the crowd of people. He nods, and takes the child's hand, escorting her to the crowd. Fox sees this, and couldn't help but smile. When the pair were no more than a few meters from the crowd, Shodai let go of her hand as the girl's mother came running forward. She embraced her daughter as tightly as she could, while the girl buried her face in her mother's chest. The mother looks up, and whispers "Thank you." to Shodai, who simply nods in acknowledgement. Then, as he turns to leave, Samantha breaks away from her mother, and embraces him from behind, wrapping her arms around his right leg. He turns, and looks down at the girl husky. She looks up, beaming, and says "Thank you very much!" to him. Shodai tussles her head again, and pats it before nodding. The girl backs away, as does Shodai. The red and silver warrior looks up.

"SHUWATCH!" Shodai is away in the air like a rocket, heading for space. Fox slips away from the scene unseen. He makes it to his arwing, and is very surprised to see Steven waiting beside his arwing.

"How the hell did you get here?" Fox nearly shouts. Steven shrugs, having a broad grin on his features.

"A good magician never reveals his secrets." he replied. Both vulpines climb into their arwings, and speed off toward the Great Fox.

Venom, some time later: Kemur relays the information it had gathered to its master. The cloaked figure sits in the chair, feeling rather pleased. "So, now we know who he is, and now we know our next target. Inform our associate, that we may need him to step up his production a little bit, if we are to destroy the Star Fox team, and Ultraman at the same time." he says, as Kemur bows, and leaves the room, hearing its master's laughter.


	6. Oikonny's Retribution, pt1

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 6

Oikonny's Retribution pt.1

"So, you can alter your size at any time you want, becoming smaller or larger as the situation demands." Fox said, walking next to Steven.

"Correct. One of the perks of being a super-evolved being." the other vulpine said, with a hint of pride. The two vulpines, one more evolved than the other, were walking down the hallway to Fox's quarters. It has been only a few hours after the engagement on Corneria with the Kemur, and Fox's opinion of the newest member was starting to change. At first, he felt threatened by him, due to his abilities. However, he found out that, even a hero needs help every now and then.

"So, how small can you get?" he asked.

"The smallest that I can get, is roughly the size of a microbe."

"Seriously? So, that means that you are able to enter a person's body, if you wanted to."

"If I wanted to, yes. However, after one of my….past assignments, I'd not care to go through that ordeal ever again."

"Why, what happened?"

"Trust me, Fox, you don't wanna know. Let's just leave it at that."

"Uhm, okay." the vulpine said, a little unsure. They reached Fox's quarters, and the afore-mentioned vulpine opened the door to allow the both of them to enter.

"Now, will you tell me what this is about?" Steven said, after Fox closed the door.

"There's something that I wanna say. I'm sorry." There was silence in the air, as Steven was waiting for the leader of the famous mercenary team to continue.

"That's it? You're sorry?" he said, raising an eye-brow. "Why'd you take me to your quarters for a simple apology?"

"Because if Falco overheard it, I'd never hear the end of it. Especially since your not exactly his favorite person right now. If he overheard that, well…." Fox simply shrugged, while Steven stayed on the main subject.

"But, what exactly are you sorry about?"

"For the way I acted. I forgot that, you are here on your own assignment, your own mission. I shouldn't have chastised you like that. When you look like us, it's easy to forget that you're really…well…not like us. It won't happen again."

"You're apologizing for acting like a leader?" Steven asked, both of his eye-brows now raised. "You have nothing to be sorry for. You were just doing your duty as the team leader of Star Fox. If anything, I should apologize for not telling you of my intentions earlier. Remember, I joined the team, so I could help get my adversary out of your system faster."

"Right. But, seeing you transform and fight that….whatever it was, reminded me how alien you are to us. I still can't get past the physical appearance, but Krystal seems to see right through you. What does she see in you, that allows her to see past your true self?" Fox asked. Steven looked away, and seemed to wonder that himself.

"I wish I knew. When she first came to me on that planet a week ago, and lent me aide, I was thinking the same thing. 'Why is she helping something so alien, so strange, unhesitant and unafraid?' It's been going over my mind ever since I joined the team." Steven then pulled out the kerchief that Krystal used to bandage his arm out of his pocket, and stared at it, hoping that he would see the answer for himself.

"Maybe it's because of the fact that she's so innocent of the things that we are exposed to. Remember, Krystal joined our team not long before you did, and she came from a civilization that was not as advanced as ours. I mean, she still has issues grasping the concept of a light switch." Fox said, chuckling in amusement. He remembers the first time he flicked on the light switch to Krystal's room, and she yelped in surprise as the light flashed on, illuminating the room. That never failed to get a laugh out of him. Then, something struck him. "Hey, Steven?"

"Hmm?"

"I wanna ask you something."

"Go ahead."

"Have you heard of a planet called Cerinia?"

"Why?"

"That's Krystal's homeworld. It was supposedly destroyed years ago, and the girl was searching for answers as to how it was destroyed."

"Destroyed? It's not destroyed."

"Wh-what are you talking about? Krystal told me that it was destroyed. It was reduced to nothing more than rubble and debris in space."

"You're talking about Cerinia, yes? The planet in the system that is several thousand quads from here, in the constellation that your people call 'The Hound's Head'?"

"Y-yeah?"

"It's not destroyed. It very nearly was, but it's not destroyed. I remember one of my comrades saying that, they returned from a planet in that system, filled with strange, blue-furred creatures. He, along with several others of my kind were able to save them, just before the cataclysm hit. I think I remember the coordinates for the planet, if you'd like me to show you." Fox was dumbfounded. He stood, rooted to the spot, as he took in the information slack-jawed. He was told by the blue-furred vixen that her homeworld was destroyed utterly, and now, here's another alien who's saying that it isn't.

"Please, do so. The star-chart is right there." he said, gesturing to the hologram to his left. Steven walked over to it, and started to select various stars in the hologram image, each one getting larger and more definitive as he progressed. Soon, he stopped at a blue planet, with two moons, orbiting a yellow star, with three other planets in its orbit. He stepped back, and Fox came forward, his mouth agape. It was almost exactly as Krystal described it; mostly blue with green thrown in to show the landmasses, two moons, orbiting a yellow giant. He just couldn't believe it. It was there, intact, and floating along its merry way in its orbit around the star. "We need to show Krystal this. She is gonna flip when she hears about this!" Fox said, excitedly.

Venom: "Sir, your associate is wondering how repairs are going for your armada." an ape officer said to Oikonny. The future ape-lord decided to personally over-see the reconstruction of his fleet, and headed for one of the large under-ground factories that the native Venomians had established. However, aside from the reptiles that live here, there were also criminals who were signed onto Andross's payroll, many of whom still hold allegiance to him, and are now serving under Andrew. The ape looks at the officer, eye-brow raised in a incredulous manner.

"He's joking, right?" he asks, the officer not getting that it was rhetorical.

"I don't think he is, sir. We just received a message two minutes ago, asking how repairs to your damaged forces are progressing." Oikonny sighed, and held his head in a gloved hand. While he lost more than a third of his forces, thanks to Star Fox and the Ultra, It will still be some time before he can get his forces to full strength. All the while, the conveyor belts carted several parts for fighters, while cranes held partly or nearly completed fighters, with robotic arms welding the hull and wings onto the fighters. The atmosphere was full of the noise of machines whirring and clanking, as well as the hissing of the welding torches and the stench of burning metal filling the large cavernous space that Oikonny and his personal guard were at. To get a better look of the production, Oikonny and co. were perched up high, in one of the various cat-walks near the ceiling of the cavern that served as the factory, the entire facility actually being built inside of the cave.

"Tell him, that production is going as fast as they are able to, and that we should have full strength soon." Oikonny ordered the ape. He bowed, and left the cat-walk. Oikonny sighed again, and left out of an exit to a hallway. Personnel and guards got out of his way, and stood at attention when he passed, as the would-be ape-lord hurried along to his destination. Soon, he reached a heavy, metal door. Then, a small protuberance poked out of the panel beside the door, and a thin, red laser went to his left eye, then his right. Seconds afterward, the door opened up, and Oikonny entered the darkened room. Ashe entered, the room lit up with fluorescent lighting, making the thing that Oikonny was heading for, all the more visible; it was another Shogun. However, unlike its predecessor, it was being fed the latest data. Standing an impressive fourty five meters, the mech was surrounded by lab technicians, and mechanics. Oikonny walked towards one of them, and spoke. "How is my pet project coming along?"

"Nearly done sir. Once we have downloaded all of the necessary information, then it will be ready for its first true test." one of the technicians in a white lab-coat explained. Oikonny walked over to the panel that was beside the right foot of the Shogun. On it, was a monitor that was replaying the previous fights that Shodai had waged in the Lylat system. Though few, they should provide the necessary information for the ape-lord's plan. Oikonny grinned broadly as the information was sent to the Shogun's artificial intelligence.

Great Fox: "No. I can't believe it. I just can't believe it." Krystal was taking the news rather well, in Steven's opinion. Fox and Steven went to Krystal to tell her that her people still existed in the universe, and, understandably, the blue-furred vixen was more than a little shocked by all of this. "Cerinia cannot still be alive. When I left it, the sun was about to go nova, and destroy it in a fiery cataclysm!" she almost shouted.

"You left, just before my kind arrived. We were able to stabilize the sun, so it wouldn't turn into a supernova and wipe out all life on your planet. We didn't know that they had sent one of their own into space, to escape the threat. If we had known, we would've brought you back to Cerinia."

"Why didn't you tell me this? WHY?" the vixen cried, tears streaming down her face.

"I didn't join in the efforts to save Cerinia, so I had no idea what they looked like. If I had known, then I would've told you that your planet still existed." Steven stated plainly. Krystal couldn't hold back the tears anymore. She broke down into sobs, realizing that her race had not been destroyed, that she was indeed not the last of her kind. Fox went over to comfort her, embracing her from behind as she sat on her bed. Steven stood there like a statue, letting the blue vixen calm down a bit, after receiving probably the most shocking news since she found out her world was in danger. When she was done, she sniveled and stood up, facing Steven with a hardened expression.

"Take me there."

"What?" Steven asked.

"Take me to Cerinia." she replied, her tone as hard as her face.

"I can't." Steven said.

"Why not?"

"Because I still have my mission to complete here. Once I am finished with my business here, I will put in a special request to my superiors to have you taken to Cerinia. Until then, you will have to wait."

"I can't wait, Steven. I just found out that I'm not the last of my kind, they survived an apocalypse, after I had been lead to believe that they had been dead for over three years, and now, you are telling me that you cannot take me there, because of your mission?" she asked, getting up in his face. Steven was unflinching, not moving. He understands how she feels, but this takes precedence over her own wants.

"Would you rather abandon your comrades, the people who took you in after saving you from Andross, to two madmen who will undoubtedly ravage the system, until there is nothing left?" he growled. "Because that is precisely what will happen. And after that, my adversary could head for Cerinia as well, with you still on it. And it won't matter if you were wondering if you were the last of your kind, because you'll be dead right beside them!" he said, raising his voice to her. The vixen seemed to take a step back from the Ultra/vulpine, while his own expression hardened for a moment, then softened again. Krystal looked to be on the verge of tears again, when Steven placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. Krystal brushed it off, and sat on her bed, not facing the Ultra/vulpine. Steven left the room, leaving Fox to try and soothe Krystal's ruffled fur. He stormed down the hallway, almost running over poor Slippy, and slammed the door to his quarters. He felt frustrated, and angry, something that he had not felt in a long while. Not since Earth. He also noticed, how these people were a lot like humans in that regard. He feels for the vixen, but if he takes her to Cerinia now, it will leave the Lylat System open to attack from a foe he knows will leave nothing standing, and nothing to stop him from doing so. Even with this thought, however, he cannot help but feel ever more conflicted about it.

Cornerian Military Center, Corneria: General Pepper sat at his desk, going over the latest reports about the red and silver alien being that has appeared and disappeared within the last few weeks. He goes over them, but only briefly glances at them, already knowing what it is that they say; merely what the witnesses saw, but not what he knows. He knows why the red and silver alien being has appeared in Lylat, and he knows that if he fails here, The whole system will face a threat that will make Andross look like a marmoset. He hasn't told the Star Fox team the true nature of their latest member, because he is afraid he will blow his cover. However, this doesn't stop the feeling of anxiety that constantly wells up inside of him.

Venom, at around that time: Oikonny was sitting in his 'throne', waiting to receive word that his masterpiece has neared completion. His associate said that his own 'secret weapon' needed more time to reach completion, time that the ape just would not wait on. Oh, no, he will take matters into his own hands. If everything goes according to plan, he will have the alien in his grasp, and hopefully, a certain mercenary team will be there to witness the entertainment. After all, what good is a show, if no one is around to witness it? The idea brings a smile to Oikonny's visage. The battle information was now being loaded into his weapon's computer, all he needs is the necessary information from his 'associate', which he sent his subordinate to take care of. Then, his door opened, and a skinny reptile in a uniform, his rank suggesting a lieutenant, came almost running in. Oikonny leaned forward, eager to receive word from him. "Sire, we have received word back from your comrade."

"Yes, and?" Oikonny asked, growing impatient.

"He requests why you want such information on the alien being. We told him why, but he wants to hear it from you, yourself." the reptile hissed hurriedly. Oikonny's expression froze, then it turned to a scowl.

"WHAT? He's asking me, personally, why I want information on my enemy? Isn't it obvious to him?" he shouted at the reptile, who cowered from the raging baboon. The ape stood up in a rage, and pointed at the reptile. "Get him on the line!" he yelled.

"He's waiting for a reply from you, right now sire." the reptile hissed fearfully.

"Get out of my sight!" Oikonny shouted, and the reptile did so, with post haste. Oikonny stormed to the main screen, and turned it on. The hooded visage of his 'associate' filled it. "I believe you are inquiring about why I want information on our enemy?" Oikonny asked.

"That is so. I was wondering why my comrade would be so willing to taste defeat for a second time." he replied in a raspy voice. This made Oikonny's blood boil ever more.

"It's so I can devise a way to defeat him, 'my friend'." Oikonny bit back the urge to retort harshly, knowing full well that to do so would be unwise.

"I see. Well, perhaps it would be wise to send you what it is that I do know about our adversary. After all, if you do defeat him, I would be in your debt." The robed figure said, rather politely this time. This made Oikonny calm down a bit. "I will send the information to you, within the hour. Is that quick enough for you, my friend?" he asked.

"That will be fine." Oikonny replied. The figure switched off, and Oikonny let out a heavy sigh.

On another part of Venom: Kemur was standing behind his robed master, his wounds he had received from the Ultra had already healed, not even scars remain on its hideous visage. It had its arms folded across its broad chest. "Why are you giving such dangerous information to such a dangerous person?" it asked. Its master chuckled in amusement.

"Because it will be all the more amusing to see the stupid ape fall flat on his face, again." he replied. "Have the data ready to be sent, and await for my command."

"All of the data, master?" it asked, unmoving. The robed figure seemed to consider, then answered.

"No. Just what you deem to be enough to let him think that he will obtain victory. Once you are done, await my signal, and send it to…our mutual benefactor." Kemur bowed slightly, and left the room. Its master smiled underneath his hood.

Great Fox, several hours later: Steven was lying in bed, asleep. He dreamed of his past battles on Earth, while combined with the human Hayata. Of all the planets and systems in the known universe, none have captivated him like Earth had. The battles that he had waged in its defense were famous on Earth, as well as on M78, and he was celebrated on his homeworld for it, being called one of the greatest warriors that his planet had ever seen. He dreamed this, then, his dream was interrupted by a danger signal going off in his head. He awoke with a start, and sat up suddenly. He looked out of the viewport on his wall, and tried to discern what it was that had disturbed his much-needed sleep. Then, he used his Ultra-senses to see, and feel, the disturbance. Then, he saw it, the Ultra sign. The language of his people was being transmitted into the vast reaches of space. It would not be detectable by any sensors that these people would have, nor would they see it. Even Krystal, the team's telepath, would be blind to it. He read it, and it made his beat quicken when he was finished

'Ultra, I know what you are, and who you are. I call on you, one on one, to a duel. If you win, I shall withdraw my forces from the Lylat system, and not bother it again. If I win, you are to leave the System, and let me, Andrew Oikonny, the heir to the great Andross and his mighty empire, rule it for all of time, and not let yourself, or any like you set foot in the System forever.'

It was a challenge, from the mad ape that he had thought that he had dealt with before. He had heard that a large portion of his fleet had escaped from the Cornerian forces, but he thought that he had destroyed Oikonny. But, like the cockroach of Earth, he seems to scurry back, when you least expect it. Fine, he will go out, and meet this foe that challenges him. He grabbed his Beta Capsule off of the night-stand, and was prepared to leave, when something else stopped him. The same sensation came over him again, and he turned to see the sign flash again, this time a different message:

'Come alone.'

As if he would be dishonorable enough to rely on others to fight his battles for him. Steven smirked, and headed out. He made his way to the hangar, satisfied that everyone on the ship is sound asleep. Only the automatic alarms should be functional in the hangar, and he can bypass those easily. He made it to the hangar, and was about to hop into his fighter, when he thought of something; if he should take an arwing out like this, the alarms would go off, and everyone would be down here in seconds, and he can't have that. No, he decided to do this the old-fashioned way. He pulled out his Beta Capsule, and raised it high, and activated it. Shodai was human size, his right fist raise high, the other brought up to his head. Then, with the force-field still on, he flew through it with ease. He made his way to where the Ultra Sign emanated, the barren planet, that these people know as Venom.

Venom, just shortly afterward: "Sir, we have a confirmed contact coming at us at sub-light speed." Oikonny was walking back and forth in the sensor room, just after he sent the challenge to the Ultra. He had been waiting for almost a half-hour, when the techie told him that the alien warrior had made itself known. Oikonny hurriedly made his way to the ape's station, and looked over his shoulder. It showed a monitor with a depiction of Venom in 3D, and a reading headed for the planet rather quickly. The baboon smiled broadly. The game was on.

Shodai landed on the planet's surface, the polluted atmosphere cutting off his solar energy. He can't last long in this environment, but he is prepared to fight in this place. Then, a part of the desert terrain opened up, and a doorway opened, inviting him in. Shodai looked at it cautiously, then entered, knowing that he had little choice in the matter. The doorway closed on the alien warrior, and he had only the light of his eyes and his warning light to guide him through. He walked down the darkened hallway. Then, an arrogant, male high-pitched voice laughed maniacally. Shodai knew this to be Oikonny. The arrogance never left the ape's voice as he spoke. "I knew that you would answer my challenge, Garrison member. I have collected quite a bit of information on you. Hailing from the planet M78, also known as the Land of Light in your language. Your reliance on solar energy, and other strong light and heat sources to survive, and many others. Oh, yes, your friend gave me quite a bit on you. Now, I have the means to defeat you, and take this System for my own." Shodai decided to switch back to his anthro disguise, to help conserve the energy for the upcoming fight. In his Steven disguise, he walked down the hallway, relying on his Ultra senses to guide him through. "You think that an insignificant worm like you can defeat me, in my own home? I don't think so! You're in my ball-park here, buddy! Here, you play by my rules, and the rules say, that you die, right here!" Steven didn't know what it was that the mad ape was babbling about, and he really didn't care. He just wanted to get this over with, and get on with his true mission. He knows that the ape will lead him to his adversary, and he will either get the information from him willingly, or he will beat it out of him. The hallway opened up into a large cavern, with machinery thumping and humming all around. It was dimly lit, just enough to see around. It was deserted, the machines running on automatic, or it was recently evacuated for the coming show. Shodai stepped in, looking around. The cavern was massive, with the ceiling standing at least several hundred feet high, and the cave itself seemed large enough to fit a whole city in. He could see fighters and the like being put together by the mechanical arms wielding torch welders, and the like.

'So, this is where the ape's army is being manufactured, is it? Fine. After I've dealt with the ape, I'll raze the whole place to the ground' Steven mentally noted. The Ultra/vulpine walked onto a balcony, and headed down the steps to the open.

"Do you like my humble little factory? It's not much, but it provides for half of my invasion fleet. There are two others like it on the planet, the inhabitants having built them, upon my uncle Andross's orders. Then, in the space of a few years, he built the largest armada the System had ever known. Of course, he was defeated by the Star Fox team, just before he could obtain total victory. Because of that, I swore to avenge my uncle's passing, and defeat the Star Fox team, and take control of the Lylat System, just as my uncle intended. Your defeat, would mean that nothing will stand in my way. I will kill you, then my 'associate', once I have done away with you. I know that he plans to double-cross me, but he won't have the chance, not with what I'm packing." He ended with a mad cackle, and signed off. Just then, the whole cavern started to shake, and a part of the ground in front of Steven opened up. Then, a large shape rose up, and towered over the man-sized Ultra/vulpine. It was humanoid in shape, wielding a shield, and a rifle. It looked a lot like the Shogun Warrior that he defeated a while ago, it seemed like ages since Steven had seen something like it. It looked down at the Ultra/vulpine, pointing its rifle at him. It fired, only to miss, the Ultra/vulpine rolling out of the way of its fire. Steven ducked behind a conveyor belt, and pulled out his Beta Capsule. He scowled, and raised it high. There was a bright flash, and light swirled out of the Capsule, and enveloped him. His figure swelled, and he faced the Shogun with a battle stance. It turned to Shodai, shield raised defensively, rifle at the ready. Then, the lights just brightened, making the cavern more visible. Shodai looked around him, confused at the sudden change of lighting. Then, several craft rose up, surrounding the pair. At first, Shodai thought that they were to fire on him at a moment's notice, but instead, they just hovered there. What could they be doing?

In his throne room, Oikonny was watching everything on his large view screen. He even had a bowl of popcorn and drink in hand, to help celebrate today's great victory. He was surrounded by his close subordinates, whom he felt deserved to watch this momentous occasion. The baboon happily munched away at his bowl, while slurping loudly at his drink. He turned to one of his underlings. "Are the cameras ready?" he asked.

"Yessir. All of the camera drones are getting the scene clearly. We are waiting for your command to broadcast system-wide." one of them answered.

"Excellent. Get the signal ready! Have the Shogun stay his hand until I have given the signal, and make sure that our guest behaves himself. I don't want him to act too soon, not until I have announced the greatest show that the System has ever seen." Oikonny put down his bowl and drink, turning to face the camera drone in front of him. He brushed off the crumbs off of his flight suit, and smiled broadly.

Great Fox, at that time: Krystal couldn't sleep. The blue-furred vixen couldn't get over the fact that her people were not destroyed, as she had been lead to believe. She wondered what it was that they were doing now, if her parents, the ruling heads of her planet, wondered where their daughter was, if they even missed her. All these thoughts and more raced through her skull faster than light. She got up, clad in her night-gown, and wondered over to the faucet to get some water. She got a glass, and filled it with the clear, cool fluid. After gulping it down, her thoughts still persisted to irritate her, Steven's words echoing through them;

'Would you rather abandon your comrades, the people who took you in after saving you from Andross on Sauria, to two madmen who will ravage the System until there is nothing left? It won't matter if you were wondering if you were the last of your kind, because you'll be dead right next to them!'

Krystal put the glass down, and held her head in a paw, wondering how he could be so cruel. Then, her screen came to life with fuzz, and a very familiar visage filled it, smiling broadly at her. Her breath was caught in her throat as she recognized who it was. Oikonny was smiling like a maniac at the camera in front of him, and spoke.

"Good people of the Lylat System, your future emperor brings tidings to his future subjects. As you are well aware, I had come to take my rightful place as ruler of the System, only to be stopped by the Star Fox team, and a certain red and silver alien that you, no doubt, remember. After all, he may have been with us for a short time, but I'm sure that he left quite an impression on all of us, including myself. Therefore, I had decided that, he needs to be taught a lesson. A lesson that he will not soon forget. A lesson, that even a hyper-evolved being has superiors." With that, the scene shifted to one that made Krystal gasp; It was Shodai, facing off against a Shogun Warrior. Both were in their battle stances, unmoving, waiting for the other to make a move. Then, it shifted to Oikonny, who still kept his evil grin. "I invite you all, to watch the spectacle of the century, as the alien warrior who has defied me, be shown the error of his ways. Well, sit back and enjoy!" he ended with a maniacal cackle, and the screen shifted to Shodai and the Shogun still facing off against eachother. Then, an alarm went off in Krystal's room, followed by a mechanical sounding voice, belonging to ROB64. "All team members to the bridge. Repeat, all team members to the bridge at once." Krystal wasted no time in getting dressed in her flight suit, and heading for the bridge in seconds. She was greeted by her other team members, minus one, who was facing off against the Shogun warrior. The Star Fox team was already in battle-dress, and the screen was already alive with the scene of Shodai facing off against the mechanical warrior. Fox McCloud felt guilt over this, feeling responsible for the red and silver alien, and his thoughts showed it. Krystal placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.

"I let it slide the first time, but this time, if he survives, I'm gonna kill him myself for this." the vulpine said, in a low, angry voice. He was angry at Shodai, since he left without telling anyone, again, and also at feeling helpless against the situation at hand, only capable of watching the spectacle before him. Krystal felt this, and understood completely, and everyone else felt almost the exact same thing.

"Is there anything that we can do?" asked Slippy.

"Like what, pray tell?" Falco asked. "What can we possibly do? Steven is on his own, down there, and we don't even know where he is!"

"Subject Steven is on the planet Venom" ROB's mechanical voice sounded, startling everyone on the bridge.

"How do you know that, bucket butt?" Falco asked.

"Personal transmitter sending signal from Venom. Subject left at approximately fourty minutes prior to now. Reason: unknown."

"Okay, so we know where he is, but not why. However, that can wait for later. Right now, we have to get in there and help him." Peppy said.

"No." All eyes were on Fox.

"Wh-what did you just say?" Krystal asked.

"I said no." he replied, his tone hard.

"But-but, why? Steven could need our help out there." Slippy argued.

Fox remembered what it was that Steven had said, and sat in the command seat.

"We'll wait, until he really does need us. After all, I don't think that we want to show up, and miss out on all of the action, right?" he said, a slight grin on his face. The rest of the team looked at eachother, then back at the screen. 'Come on, Steven, don't let us down now.' Fox thought.

Venom, at that time: Shodai had heard everything that Oikonny said over the P.A. system. So, his defeat would serve as the amusement for the mad ape, would it? Very well, he will make sure that Oikonny would get his money's worth. The Shogun started to advance on Shodai, and the red and silver alien rushed at the mechanical warrior. It fired its rifle at him, but Shodai just leapt up over him, and landed behind the robot. The machine raised its shield, and spun, trying to bash Shodai with it. The red and silver alien blocked the shield with both arms, and grabbed the arm, sending two karate chops onto the elbow joint. Despite the incredible blows, the joint held. The Shogun swung with its rifle, hitting Shodai in the back and making him lose his balance momentarily. Then, he swung him off of his shield arm, sending him flying to the ground. Shodai got up to a knee, and prepared for the worst. The Shogun raised its rifle, and fired at the alien. Shodai rolled out of the way of the yellow bolt of energy, and got up to a stand. HE faced the Shogun, who fired again, and again, and again. Shodai brought up his Ultra Barrier, and the bolts washed over the wall of light harmlessly. Shodai stood up, and clenched his right fist. Then, he swung a punch at his barrier, shattering it, and the shards went flying at the Shogun, the pieces of light exploding and sending sparks upon contact. The machine was able to block most of the fragments with the shield, but those that got through, left scarred metal in their wake. When the Shogun lowered its shield, multiple scarring and scorch marks were visible on the outer hull. Other than that, it seemed undamaged. Shodai got back into his combat stance, and was preparing for another engagement with the machine. The Shogun raised its rifle, and fired at the warrior again. Shodai swung with his arms, the bolts striking harmlessly off of his strikes. After a few shots, the Shogun lowered its rifle, and fired a tether from its torso. The tether wrapped itself around Shodai, rendering him immobile. Shodai struggled against the bond, but couldn't break free. Then, the tether surged with energy, as thousands of volts surged down it, and towards the alien warrior. Shodai was bathed in the electricity, but he thanked God for his electrical immunity. Then, the Shogun raised the voltage to several hundred thousand. While not particularly dangerous, it sure stung like hell. Growling with effort, Shodai gathered his strength, and with a mighty shout, he broke the tether that was holding him down into several pieces. The electricity backfired, and short-circuited, sending back to the Shogun. The reversed flow made it stumble back, and send sparks, but it recovered itself, and faced the alien warrior. All the while, Oikonny was enjoying the show, along with his subordinates. True the Shogun was able to overpower the Ultra, as he was so sure of, he was enjoying the fact that the Ultra was putting up a stiff fight. After all, what fun would it be if the red and silver alien were to lose so easily? The fight raged, as Shodai leapt up at the Shogun, who brought up its shield. Shodai executed a drop kick that impacted against the shield. It held against the attack, but it made the machine stumble back a was. Then, Shodai leaped again, and executed a flying punch to the machine. This blow also struck the shield, and it, too, made the machine stumble back from the force of the blow. Shodai sent two punches its way, and a jump kick to the shield, but it held strong, despite the large dents that were starting to form. Then, Shodai did a spin-kick that caught the shield on the edge. It forced the Shogun to turn, and fall to a knee, leaving its flank open. Shodai seized the opportunity, and heel up high, then sent it crashing down on the back of the mechanical warrior. Shodai mounted on top of it, and sent punches and chops onto its unprotected back. The Shogun started to rise, and Shodai put it in a headlock, determined to wrench the machine's head clean off. The mechanical warrior would have none of it, as it stood up, with Shodai standing behind him, still having it in his grip. The Shogun elbowed him in the ribs, hard, and Shodai released his grip. Then, he got bashed in the face by its shield, and was met with a fury of blasts from the Shogun's rifle. The bolts lanced across Shodai's chest and body, each bolt sending sparks from each impact, and making the Warrior of Light stumble back. When the Shogun lowered its rifle, Shodai fell to a knee, his warning light blinking steadily. The Shogun held the rifle in both hands this time, and prepared to fire a charged shot at the prone alien. Oikonny watched in glee, and the team held their breath as the machine aimed at their newest member. One name was on Krystal's lips; "Steven…" As if hearing her thought, Shodai looked up at the Shogun, just before it fired its charged shot at the warrior. The blast impacted, and the surrounding area was engulfed in a bright red flash. Everyone watching the spectacle had to shield their eyes, even the ones far away in the Lylat System, so great was the flash. The explosion itself was near deafening, and those in the Lylat System couldn't hear it, for it was above audible range for the drones, then the sounds of the shockwaves came rolling in. Oikonny cheered his simian head off, as did his subordinates, once their eyesight returned. However, the Star Fox team was nowhere near as jovial, not after seeing the blinding light. Krystal looked worriedly at the monitor, her hands to her chest. The rest of the team held their breaths, waiting for the glare and background noise to subside. The static decreased gradually, and so did the glare. However, once the white-noise was down to a minimum, all those watching the spectacle noticed one thing, that put the same question into their minds; Where is that beeping sound coming from? Then, the glare started to subside, and the shapes were becoming more definite, until it could be recognized as the Shogun, and something else. Something that made Oikonny's jaw drop, and the Star Fox team almost cheer; erecting his Ultra Barrier at the last possible moment, Shodai withstood the blast, whereas the surrounding area around and behind him looked as though a hydrogen bomb had hit, the factory, the fighters and parts, all were nothing more than a crater. Shodai still had the barrier raised, and was in a kneeling position. He lowered it, and stood up, his full height almost reaching the cieling of the cavern. The light on his chest was not shining blue this time, but was a steady, flashing red, the chime going at a steady pace. Oikonny let out a cry of displeasure, while the Star Fox team let out a collective sigh of relief. Oikonny was sputtering so badly he couldn't get a coherent sentence out for awhile. "AAARRRRRGGGHHH! Impossible! He should be reduced to nothing more than a crater!" Then, Shodai looked to one of the cameras, as it focused on him.

"You underestimated me, Oikonny. I have survived far worse than this pathetic little wind-up toy of yours. Impressive though it may be, you still have nothing on me. Its power may be great, but power alone won't achieve victory."

"GRRRRGGGHHH! KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM, KILL HIM NOW!" Oikonny screamed shrilly. The Shogun prepared to fire again, but Shodai was ready for it; he fired one of his shredding halos at the mechanical warrior. It dodged to the right, but that was what Shodai was hoping for; the halo sliced through the left arm of the machine at the elbow, sending its shield to the ground. Left with a useless stump, it took aim at the red and silver alien, who was quick to react; just as it was preparing to fire at Shodai, he fired his Slash Beam, destroying the rifle in an explosion that sent the mechanical warrior on its back. It got back on its feet, and faced the red and silver warrior. Weaponless, it had only one option left, unarmed combat. It ran, and leapt up. It performed a drop-kick, aimed at Shodai. The red and silver warrior evaded the attack, and the machine landed behind him. It got back up, and engaged Shodai in a hand to hand duel. However, while it was programmed to fight Shodai on his terms, its bulkiness made it clumsy and ill-suited for an engagement of this sort. Shodai, on the other hand, was infamous to his foes for his martial arts prowess and ultra-strength. The Shogun went for an over-head blow, but Shodai effortlessly caught it in his arms, and shoulder-tossed him to the ground. The Shogun got up again, and swung a punch, that Shodai ducked under, and came up with an upper-cut to its simian-like face, making it stumble back. A spin-kick made it stumble back more, and a powerful hay-maker dented its chest armor as it fell to the ground. It got back to its feet, only to be met with a rising knee to its face. Then, Shodai executed several kicks at once, all aimed at the body and face. After that, he grabbed the robot by the head, reaching behind him. Shodai flung the robot over his shoulder, and sent it to the ground. Then, he dragged the robot to its feet, and shoulder-tossed it again. He dragged it to its feet again, and shoulder-tossed it again. Then, while it was prone on the ground, he got to its feet, and grabbed the robot by the legs, both legs under his arms. Then, he spun, and swung the robot around. After the fourth swing, Shodai released the robot, and sent it flying to one of the cavern walls with a loud crash. It slumped to the ground, its systems overloading, sparks flying everywhere, and oil and lubricant bleeding and spurting on various parts of the body. It uneasily stood up, its right arm hanging limply by its side, damaged by the impact against the wall. It could only face the Ultra, and its end. Shodai decided to end this charade once and for all. He gathered as much of his energy as he could muster. His form glowed brightly, and the glow entered his arms, which looked like they were glowing with a holy light. Then, he placed his arms in a plus-shape, and fired his Spacium Beam, the attack actually forcing Shodai back, leaving skid marks in the ground. The powerful beam scorched the ground without touching it, and it impacted against the Shogun. It was consumed in a bright light, and then exploded in a fiery blast of light and fire. When the explosion ended, nothing was left except for useless debris and scrap. However, Shodai was not without worries of his own; he fell to a knee, his warning light going at an accelerated rate, the chime almost constant. He needs to recharge now, or he'll die. He tried to stand, but was brought down to a knee again. Then he looked up, and was enveloped in a red light. Just before his warning light stopped, he vanished. Those watching, could hardly believe it. Oikonny was dismayed beyond belief that his latest Shogun was destroyed, but that was almost forgotten by the latest turn of events. He was practically cheering like a madman, while his subordinates wondered if he was insane.

"Uh, sir, are you alright?" one of them asked.

"Alright? Alright? Am I alright?" he asked, most elated. "I've never been better, you fool! I just got rid of one of the most annoying pains I've ever had to deal with!"

"But, sir. You just lost the Shogun." This made Oikonny freeze in his tracks as the realization of this hit.

"True, that is a loss. But then, it served his purpose. I will miss it, but that's why I've got another one in production right now!" he said, almost as ecstatic as before. "Quickly, quickly, bring the feed on! I've got me an important announcement to make!" As Oikonny's underlings got went this way and that, the ape sat back in his throne, his jovial expression never leaving his visage. Once the cameras were rolling, he spoke. "My dear subjects, what you have just witnessed, was an example of what happens to those who question my rule!" Oikonny stood up, shaking a gloved fist in triumph. "Now, nothing will stand between me, and my empire. The glorious empire that my great Uncle Andross strived to create. I will achieve his dream, I will be ruler of all! Aha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha aha ha!" After his announcement, Oikonny turned to his subordinates, and pointed at them. "Get everything ready! Our fleet may not be at full strength yet, but it will more than suffice for what we have in mind! Get the pilots ready, and ready my cruiser! I'm going to combat myself!" With that, the great room was empty in moments, and Oikonny was heading for his personal cruiser, an eager smile on his simian visage.

Great Fox: Everyone watching the broadcast felt hopelessness well up when Shodai vanished into this air. Krystal held a worried look, while Fox and Peppy looked on in silence. Falco and Slippy were the most vocal, each one wondering when the next onslaught was going to get here. "ENOUGH!" Fox shouted. All eyes were on him. The vulpine rose out of his chair, and faced the team. "Nothing has changed! Steven did his duty, not it's time that we did ours. Oikonny will be bearing down on us with everything that he's got, so we must be ready! We have no time to panic, or grieve right now!"

"But, Fox, what can we do? The last time we went up against Oikonny, we got beaten back, and almost lost until Steven showed up to save us." Slippy said.

"As much as I hat to admit it, Slipster has a point. What chance do we have against them, if even Steven lost to them?" Falco agreed.

"But he didn't lose!" Krystal almost shouted. "He defeated the machine, just before he…" she couldn't finish. "The point is, Steven didn't lose. He defeated the machine. If Steven could beat that thing, then we can defeat Oikonny." All eyes were on her as she continued. " Steven said that power alone won't carry the day. Well, when Oikonny shows up, we will show him just how true those words are!" Her words definitely made an impact, as Slippy and Falco looked at one another, and Fox and Peppy smiled slightly. Then, the team members turned to the main screen, which had since faded, revealing only the star-specked reaches of space. However, despite Krystal's moving words, they wondered if they can really save the day this time.

Venom, at about that time: Amid the ruins of the factory where the battle between Ultraman and the Shogun had taken place, on the ground in the dimly-lit cavern, a form lies on its front, unconscious, almost dead. Steven lies here, his energy all but spent. However, his heart still beats. And with every beat, it grows stronger. And so, as his heart beat grows stronger, so does the tremendous power of his will that even now fights against the blackness, and beckons for him to stand up and fight. But now, he will rest, and recover for the coming battle ahead.


	7. Oikonny's Retribution, pt2

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Ch.7

Oikonny's Retribution pt.2

Several light years away from Corneria: Oikonny sat in the command chair of his cruiser, a broad grin on his face. He was expecting resistance. He was expecting his enemies to fall in the face of his superior might. He expected to be crowned emperor within hours. He expected no less than total victory this day.

As Oikonny's armada closed in on Corneria, so too, was the Cornerian Army getting prepped for the oncoming assault. The garrison that was stationed on the planet Katina had been recalled to Corneria, to bolster the Cornerian Space Forces. However, even the increased numbers in star fighters didn't seem to boost morale much. Watching Shodai's 'death' left an apparent impact on the people, more so than they cared to admit. While seeing him during his incredible battles, the people of Lylat had come to know the red and silver Ultra as a force to be reckoned with. And if even he apparently fell before Andrew Oikonny, then what chance did they have? Things were not much different on the Great Fox. While the Dreadnaught class ship was orbiting Corneria, its crew was preparing for the coming battle. Krystal was in her room, holding her staff in her hands. It was in its inactive, twelve-inch long form. The blue-furred vixen held it, while remembering the words that Steven had spoken to her, about how her planet had survived its apparent cataclysm. She remembers this, and wishes that her last words with him were not as harsh as they were. There was a knock at her door, and she bid enter. Fox poked his head into the door-way, and gazed at the distraught vixen. "Hey, General Pepper wants us in the ready room. He's about to brief us on the mission at hand."

"Okay." she said, almost silently. Fox entered, and sat next to Krystal.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I'll be just fine." she replied, her depressed gaze still fixated on her staff. Fox placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Regretting about what you said last?" he asked. Krystal scoffed, and replied.

"I thought I was the only telepath here." she looked at Fox, a sad smile on her face.

"I guess you're getting easier to read." Fox replied. Krystal let out a slight chuckle, then placed her gaze back on the staff. Fox closed his hand on it, and Krystal met Fox's gaze.

"I just wish that, I could take back what I said to him, and what I felt to him. He was right. This is more important than me getting reunited with my people. I can't leave, not when I am needed here. Steven understood that, and that's why he fought against Oikonny. Now, I won't get the chance to tell him that myself." She seemed to be on the verge of tears when she said this, but Fox did his best to comfort her.

"I'm sure that, he already knows. When this is all over, I'm sure that you'll be able to tell him that yourself." Krystal gave him a funny look.

"How? You saw what happened to him. He's…you know."

"Is he now?" Fox asked. Krystal tilted her to the side, her eyebrow raised. Fox took her hand, and lead her out of the room, to the briefing room. Slippy, Falco, and Peppy were accounted for. Even ROB had made himself known in the room. The circular room had a round table in the center, with a holographic projector in the middle of the table. The room dimmed, and the holographic projector sent a shimmering head of General Pepper floating inn the room. The wizened blood-hound looked at the team , then spoke.

"Where is Steven?" The rest of the team looked at eachother, then back to General Pepper.

"We don't know, General. We believe he went to Venom, but for reasons that are, as of yet unknown." Peppy said. The blood-hound sadly shook his head.

"I know why he went. After all, it was the assignment that was given to him."

"What do you mean by 'assignment, General?" Fox asked, a shiver going down his spine.

"Fox, I've known all along who your new member really was. His superiors contacted me, shortly before Shodai arrived in Lylat." The rest of the team was stunned. They thought that only they had known who Steven really was. But now, the General…

"Before any of you ask, I am the only one, outside of the team, who knows who Steven, or Shodai, really is. The reason why I never said anything, is because I didn't know whether or not you did as well. Tell me, did you know who he really was, before he signed onto the team?"

"Yes, General, we did." Fox answered.

"I see. In any case, Shodai was unaware that his superior had contacted me. He had told me to keep his presence here a secret, at all costs. He had told me that if people should know what it was that he was doing here, it could throw the whole System into a panic."

"The whole System is already in a panic, General. Oikonny just launched his full invasion fleet, and it's headed for right here." Fox said.

"Fox, I think that we have a lot more to worry about than just Oikonny. True, that he is the present concern. But believe you me, he is nothing compared to the guy that Shodai was after. When Oikonny is done with, we will have to deal with an enemy the likes of which that we have never seen before. But, all that can wait for later. Right now, we have more pressing matters. Oikonny is heading for here, as you are well aware. We have recalled the Katina garrison, but I'm afraid that even the Bulldog and Husky units won't save us."

"So, what do we do, General?" Fox asked.

"It's going to be suicide on our part, but my plan is to distract Oikonny's forces, long enough for you to go in and knock him Oikonny out of commission. With almost all of his forces focused on us, it should give you the window that you need to bring him down."

"Do we know how large Oikonny's armada is?" Peppy asked.

"I got a personal transmission from him a while ago, telling me how he will get vengeance on me as well, for exiling his uncle." General Pepper said, with a sad smile. "In that message, he boasted that his armada is larger than the one that Andross used to invade Lylat all those years ago. I pray that he exaggerates."

"Great. So, we're outnumbered, out-gunned, and we have a suicide plan that will undoubtedly take us into the lion's den." Falco said, his wings folded across his chest. Then a glint appeared in his eye. "So, what are we waiting for?"

Venom, at around that time: In the ruins that held the battle between Ultraman and the Shogun, a figure is seen wandering amid the ruined factory. Steven woke up, not too long ago, feeling he went another ten rounds or so with Gomorah, an opponent he faced and defeated on Earth. His body was sore from the head down, the drain of energy taking its toll on his anthro guise. After shambling to the steps leading to the cat-walk out of here, his hand inadvertently pressed a switch, and the dimly lit room went red. Shocked and confused by this, Steven turned this way and that, seeing that the whole room had turned to a deep red. Then, he looked up, and saw that it was the over-head lights that was doing it. Also, he knew that this wasn't just ordinary light. He had felt this, countless times before while in space, and on various planets. Using his X-ray vision, his suspicions were correct; Ultra-violet radiation was present in the light. The lights had an ultra-violet feature built into them. He wondered why, until it hit him. He remembered reading somewhere, that the indigenous race native to Venom were reptilian, and that they were forced to live underground at some point. Because of this, building an ultra-violet light system, in place of regular sunlight, was essential for these people, just like it was essential for the Ultra race. Steven had just found a way to rejuvenate himself. He pulled out his Beta Capsule, and pressed the switch.

Corneria, several minutes afterward: The armada was closing in. Oikonny sat in his command seat, anticipation showing in his features. He longed for this moment, and he was going to savor the sweet, sweet taste of victory. The Cornerian Army left orbit to meet him, as he was counting on. In fact, he was looking forward to crushing the fleet underfoot. "Sir, we have Cornerian Cruisers coming into view now." A techie told him. The main view-screen enlarged on the image, which showed several dozen ships coming up from the planet to engage Oikonny. He merely smiled at this.

"So, they want to play war with me, do they? Good. You guys know what to do." Everyone around him acknowledged, and went to work, while Oikonny continued to smile from ear to ear.

In the cold reaches of space, it is a known fact, that sound cannot be carried through it, due to the vacuum. However, if one could hear, they would hear the deafening explosions of ships dying and the noises of vessel firing on vessel. The Cornerian Defense Force engaged the Venomian Armada with everything they had. However, the armada was still more than twice the size they were. But that didn't stop them. They fought with unrelenting fury. For awhile, it was a stalemate, as ships fired on eachother, and went down in explosions. The Cornerian Fighters tangled with the new Invader IV class fighter, the ships proving to be more than a match for most of the Cornerian pilots. But still, they fought on. However, while Oikonny was busy with the Cornerian fleet, he failed to notice a ship warp in on his unprotected flank. Oikonny made a grave mistake, in sending most of his armada to crush the Cornerian fleet. Now he himself was almost open to an attack. And the Star Fox team was going to do its damnedest to exploit it. The four fighters sped out of the docking bay in front of the Great Fox. The Arwings flew in an arrow head formation right for Oikonny, and hopefully to victory. Fox looked to his left, then to his right, seeing that his teammates were in position. Then, he gave the order; "Alright, everyone. General Pepper has given us a window of opportunity to take Oikonny down for good. However, at the rate that they're going, it won't last long. We need to get in, and get out, fast as lightning."

"Fox, fast as lightning is what I do best." Falco chimed in, smirking.

"So's running your beak." Slippy commented. This got a light laugh out of everyone, except from the aforementioned avian, who scowled. The Venomian ships were coming into range, and Fox gave the signal

"Alright, people, let's rock n' roll!" the Arwings peeled off, and went this way and that. The ships that remained were blind to the oncoming four fighters, and didn't see the first nova bomb coming. They saw the second one, but by then, a cruiser was already in flames, and dead in space. The Star Fox team weaved through the ships that stood between them and Oikonny's personal cruiser. The ships launched their fighters at the four Arwings, who returned fire upon the Invader ships. For every shot fired, meant a death note for almost every fighter that came into contact with the team. By the dozens, the fighters were shredded to mere nothingness. However, that didn't deter them. They still kept coming at them in droves. It seemed that for every one shot down, four or five would take its place. There was laser fire everywhere, and the Arwings ducked, juked and weaved through the hail of red energy bolts, and sent some laser fire of their own back at the horde. Peppy, who remained back at tactical, was monitoring their progress. The four Arwings were pushing through the fighters, as expected, and were coming up on the cruisers that dispensed them.

"Be on guard people, you are nearing Oikonny's flagship. The defensive fire is gonna get pretty heavy there in a second."

"Thanks Pep. How's the fleet holding out?"

"They're taking a beating. They can't hold out for too much longer." Peppy replied.

"Got it. Okay, people, time to wrap this up." Fox said. Peppy wasn't kidding when he said that the defensive fire was going to get thick. Almost at every second, scarlet bolts of death seemed to whiz by, close enough for one to reach out and touch. After evading the storm of laser fire, the team was close enough to dish out the fire that they've been taking. The cruisers surrounding the flagship of Oikonny, were the exact same assault cruisers that the team encountered last time. After exploiting their weaknesses, the several assault ships and carriers were done for. All that was left, was Oikonny's ship. The quartet of Arwings sped forward, while the fierce combat between the Cornerian fleet and the Venomian armada raged in the background. General Pepper decided to take part in the battle. Aboard his personal cruiser, the General stood among the various personnel as the ship fired upon the enemy fleet, each shot crippling or killing a fighter or vessel.

"Sir, we just lost contact with the 'Gazer'." a techie shouted. That was the tenth ship that he lost. General Pepper felt his heart get heavy.

"There will be a time to mourn later. Right now, we need to buy all the time we can for Fox. All batteries fire! Hold nothing back!" At his command, the several heavy-laser emplacements on his ship erupted with emerald bolts. Each shot aimed at a fighter or vessel, and each shot hitting their mark, bringing down said fighter, or crippling/killing said vessel. However, even the ships brought down didn't seem to dent the overwhelming numbers that seemed to threaten to consume the Cornerian fleet. But still, they fought on. Fox and co. was bearing down on Oikonny's flagship, evading laser fire and fighters, while bringing some down of their own. However, it would seem that Oikonny was not as blind as they had supposed.

"Sire, I got…"

"Let me guess, you have four unidentified ships headed right for us, right?" Oikonny asked, an amused smile on his simian visage.

"Yessir!"

'Ah, they finally decided to join us.' the ape thinks with glee.

"You guys know what to do." he states plainly. The personnel acknowledged, and continued to type away on keyboards. Star Fox, meanwhile, continued to close in on the supposedly unsuspecting flagship.

"Okay, people, Oikonny doesn't suspect a thing. Let's wipe him out!" However, just as the Arwings were closing in, Krystal felt something in the back of her head. It felt like

"Expectance?" she says to herself.

"What was that Krystal?" Fox asked.

"Fox, wait, something's not right. It feels like a.." before she could finish, the flagship flashed, and a pulse of blue light emanated from it. It struck the four Arwings, and they were immobile in space.

"Wh-what the heck was that! I can't move!" Falco shouted.

"Me neither! What was that?" Fox shouted.

"That looked like an EMP." Slippy said.

"A what?" Falco inquired.

"An 'Electro-Magnetic Pulse'. It knocked out all of our systems. We're dead in Space!" Slippy wailed. Then, the sound of maniacal laughter filled the cockpits of the arwings, and a simian face filled the view screens, that was smiling broadly from ear to ear.

"Did you morons actually think that I'd just let you drop by, unannounced, and take me down without me knowing about it?" Oikonny laughed heartily at this. "You idiots fell right into my trap. I lured you here, so you can have a front-row seat of what it is that I am about to do." Oikonny signed off of the frequency, and turned to one of the techies. "Tell the armada to fall back. We are about to 'field test' our new weapon, on that fleet."

"Yessir." the ape answered hurriedly. Within minutes, the whole armada had fallen back behind the flagship. The Cornerian fleet had ceased fire after they had realized that they were no longer under enemy fire themselves. General Pepper was witnessing the spectacle, and called for a cease-fire. He studied the ships curiously, and that's when he noticed the flagship. It was a lot like Oikonny's previous flagship, only slightly larger than before. Then, the front of the ship opened up, revealing a giant lens, that was bearing down on the fleet. The Star Fox team recognized it right away.

"That's the same weapon that he used before!" Falco shouted. Then, Oikonny's face filled the view screens again, still smiling.

"Not quite, my fine feathered friend. This latest model doesn't fire a beam, but rather, lobs concentrated blasts of plasma at its target, enough to wipe out a whole city in one blow. Guess what it'll do against your little fleet." Oikonny said, his tone full of mockery. The rest of the team looked on in fear and despair.

"No, General Pepper!" Fox shouted.

"Oh, yes, this will be the last engagement that your good general will have the pleasure of participating." Oikonny turned to a person not on screen, and nodded. After that, he signed off, and the screen went blank. The rest of the team looked at the flagship, and held their breath. The front of the ship glowed blue/white, as power started to build up within the lens. General Pepper saw this, and felt his heart sink.

"Get the fleet out of here, before he fires that thing!" he shouted.

"Too late! Look!" a person shouted, and all eyes were focused on the view screen, as the ship discharged a large blast of energy. The blue/white ball of destruction bore down on the fleet, as the General closed his eyes, and awaited for the inevitable.

"GENERAL PEPPER!" Fox shouted. The blast closed in, and detonated. The explosion was blinding, and if not for the vacuum of space, it would probably be deafening as well. The Star Fox team had to avert their eyes, lest they be blinded by the incredible blast. Even the Armada had to shield their vision, or be blinded. Oikonny, aboard his flagship, let out a triumphant cheer as he apparently defeated the legendary General Pepper. The Star Fox team looked on, at the spot where the fleet had hovered. The glare was still pretty bad, but was reduced to a more tolerable level. However, it was Krystal who stared at it the hardest. The blast may have fouled up her eyesight, but not her sixth sense. A millisecond before the blast detonated, she felt a presence. One that felt hauntingly familiar, but couldn't place her paw on it. The blast distracted her for the moment, but now that she can focus again, she can feel it more clearly. And the presence she felt, was one of great strength, and great familiarity. Her mind placed a face to the presence that she felt, and her heart skipped a beat when she put the pieces together.

"But it can't be. It just can't be." she said out loud.

"I'm afraid it is, Krystal. General Pepper is…"

"No no, not that. This presence I feel." she interrupted.

"What presence? What are you talking about Krystal?" Fox asked.

"We saw him die. We saw you die. How can you…"

"Hey, guys, check it out!" Slippy shouted. The glare was subsiding fast now. And the team could make out a shape ahead. It was humanoid, that much was certain, floating between the fleet, and the armada. It was in a type a guard position, its arms raised to shield itself. When the glare finally subsided, they were speechless at who it was that was floating before them.

The Cornerian Fleet: General Pepper closed his eyes, and awaited for his end to come. However, while there was a large explosion, there was nothing else. No sense of burning, of his life leaving this body, nothing, just a loud explosion. He opened an eye, and was met with a bright glare stinging his eyes. However, he could just make out a shape before he had to close them again. After what seemed like eternity, he opened them again, and the glare had subsided to a more tolerable state. And, he could see the figure floating in front of them more clearly; it was huge, at least fourty meters in height, and was humanoid. He couldn't make out any other details because of the glare, but as it subsided still, he could see the red and silver patterns. When he turned his head, General Pepper could see Shodai's mask-like visage staring at them. The red and silver Ultra nodded at them, and General Pepper returned it, not sure if the Ultra was addressing him or not, but doing so all the same with a smile on his canine visage. Shodai turned to face the armada, floating between it, and the fleet. All around General Pepper were murmurs and whispers, mostly about the Ultra that had saved them.

Oikonny's flagship: Andrew Oikonny was still jovial as ever, even prancing around the bridge like a madman. That is, until a lieutenant called him over. Annoyed at being interrupted, he strode over to the techie's station. The reptile looked up at him. "Well, what is it?" he asked impatiently.

"Sire, there's something here that you have to see."

"Well, let me look." Oikonny shoved the reptile away from the station, and saw the monitor. It was a close-up on the blast area. He was expecting to see debris and pieces of cruisers floating around. However, what he saw, made his heart stop, and his face go slack. "I-impossible…this just can't be.." he turned from the monitor, and to the main screen in front of him. He magnified the image, and it showed Shodai floating in between him, and the Cornerian fleet. The rest of the bridge looked up, all sound had stopped, save for the occasional beep and clicks of the machines about them. Oikonny was rooted to the spot, unable to fully comprehend how this was even possible. He had seen the Ultra die, hadn't he? He was sure of it, positive of it. And yet, here he was, intact, whole, and ready to dish some punishment. He whirled around, and shouted "Well, don't just sit there! Fire at him!"

"But sire. The new weapon needs to recharge. It will take at least twenty minutes, before we can fire again."

"I don't care! JUST KILL HIIIIMMMM!" Oikonny screamed at the top of his lungs. His flagship fired all of its weapons, minus the new weapon, and so did the armada behind it, which was now pulling up to the front to act as a shield for Oikonny. The armada unleashed a torrent of red laser bolts, all aimed at Shodai. The red and silver alien from the Land of Light charged forth. He effortlessly evaded the laser bolts, and fired his own weapons at the armada. His Spacium Beam sliced through vessels by the handfuls, and his shredding halos and Slash Beam made short work of the fighters that buzzed around him. He weaved around the vessels, using his beams, and his bare hands to take them apart. He punched one ship, and his fist went right through it, making it explode. He punched another, and it did the same thing. Another, and another, all meeting the same end. The armada tried to fight back, firing at the red and silver giant. But it was no use. He evaded them, and the bolts lanced across their own ships, sometimes destroying their own comrades. General Pepper decided to take advantage of this, and pushed the fleet forward. Then, once they were close enough, fired upon the fleet. Already having to deal with one issue, the armada was caught unawares by the incoming Cornerian fleet raining down laser fire on them. They fought a battle on two fronts; internally, dealing with Shodai, and the Cornerian fleet that poured firepower on them. Amid the chaos, Shodai noticed something; four familiar looking craft that were floating freely. He flew to them, and recognized them as Arwings. He felt for the teammates, and was relieved to see that they were alive. The team looked up, and saw the red and silver warrior from M78 looking at them. Krystal smiled broadly, tears forming in her eyes, while Fox had a knowing smile on. Slippy had a goofy grin on, and Falco kept his face stoic, but felt relief forming in his gut. In his flagship, Oikonny followed Shodai to the Star Fox team, and decided to end it, once and for all.

"FIRE EVERYHTING!" he yelled. And everything was indeed fired upon them. Shodai turned, and saw the incoming laser storm. He moved himself in between the barrage, and the prone Star Fox team. The bolts exploded against the red and silver warrior, who endured the barrage, shielding the Arwings from the attack. The bolts lanced across his back, and they were starting to hurt. He groaned in pain, but didn't drop his guard. When the attack finally did cease, he turned around. Oikonny was almost hysterical. "WHY HAVE YOU STOPPED FIRING?" he screamed.

"Sire, the cannons are overheating! If we keep this up, we'll overload and destroy the ship!" an ape officer replied.

"I DON"T CARE! JUST KEEP FIRING!" he replied, screaming at the top of his lungs. The assault resumed, but Shodai was able to erect a barrier, the bolts splashing harmlessly against the wall of light. Soon, though, the officer's words rang true. Along the ship, various explosions were taking place, as dangerously over-heated laser batteries started to explode. Shodai decided to take advantage of this situation, and get the team out of there. He scooped them up in his arms, and flew them to the Great Fox, which had fallen into the fleet, and was firing upon the enemy armada. The ship activated its tractor beam, and was pulling the Arwings into its hangar. Shodai then flew in front of the fleet, and looked at General Pepper's flagship. The blood-hound gave the order to continue fire, when he heard a voice in his head

'General Pepper…"

"Eh? Who's speaking?" he asked, turning this way and that.

'I am known as Shodai.' the voice replied. General Pepper put a face to the name, and smiled broadly.

'So, it's you.' Pepper thought. Shodai nodded at the cruiser.

'Tell your ships to cease fire. I will handle everything.' he said plainly. General Pepper nodded in acknowledgement, knowing it to be wise to listen to him, than to argue. He gave the order, and the ships ceased firing, though they were rather puzzled by this. Shodai flew in front of them, laser fire whizzing past him. His form started to glow a bright white. The luminescence entered his arms, which were shining a bright white. Then, he placed his arms into a plus-shape, and fired his strongest Spacium Beam yet. It tore through the armada, incinerating everything in its path. The blue/white beam hit its mark, as it pierced through Oikonny's flagship. The insane ape could only gape as the beam tore through the ship that he had built. Then, it was engulfed in a fiery explosion in moments. The explosion took most of the armada with it, leaving only a few left. Shodai dropped his arms to his sides when the explosion died. He looked on as the handful of ships that had survived hightailed it away from the fleet and the Ultra. Shodai turned back to the fleet, and, catching everyone off guard, saluted them. General Pepper returned the military-style salute, smiling broadly. Everyone on the ship stood up, and returned the salute as well. Shodai dropped the salute after several moments, and flew towards the spot where the flagship once hovered. He knew he felt something. He found it, and clutched it in his silvery hand. He flew back to the fleet, and opened his palm to reveal a pod-shaped object inside.

"A life raft!" one of the bridge personnel exclaimed. Shodai pushed the raft towards them, and the cruiser captured it in its tractor beam. After pulling the raft inside of the hangar, General Pepper was present to see the hatch to the pod-shaped craft open, and reveal a sight that brought a smile to his face. Oikonny was being dragged out of the life raft, rifles pointed at him to unsure that he doesn't try anything funny. General Pepper laughed out loud at this, and addressed the baboon.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't 'Emperor' Andrew Oikonny. We got your throne all nice and warmed up for you, back in prison. Take him away." The baboon let out an enraged scream, and was being dragged from the hangar to the brig by two large guards. Through the forcefield, General Pepper could see the Ultra floating in front of them. General Pepper nodded at them, and the Ultra returned the gesture. Then, he turned, and headed for the Great Fox. His form glowed a bright white, and he shrunk down to human size as he neared the hangar bay. When he passed through the forcefield, he was already the size of a man. The rest of the team was waiting for him when he touched down. They wanted to rush at him, but kept their distance. Then, a ring appeared over Shodai, and a curtain of light came down around him. When the curtain faded, Steven was standing before them, wearing a broad grin on his vulpine features. "Yo." he said. That was like a starting pistol, for immediately afterward, he was tackled to the ground by four shapes. He was dragged to his feet, the sound of laughter and shouting ringing through the hangar. Peppy watched from the rear, as the team gathered around the Ultra/vulpine, smiling to himself. General Pepper's words echoed through his mind, about how the enemy that they had to face next was unlike anything that they had seen before. However, as he sees the teammates camaraderie, he holds no doubt that they will see this thing through, and emerge victorious.


	8. Shodai's Mission

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 8

Shodai's Mission

He couldn't believe it. He was so close. He had defeated the Garrison Member. He brought the Star Fox team to a stand-still, and he had the legendary General Pepper out-matched. So why is everything falling apart? Oikonny watched as the Ultra, Shodai, tore through his armada. As the same Ultra, whom he thought he had killed in the bowels of Venom, had seemingly been resurrected from the dead to exact his vengeance against him. Is this what it was? Karma? Some higher power working against him, in denying him his birthright, his destiny? The baboon just couldn't fathom it. He sat slack-jawed in his command seat, watching his ships be destroyed one by one, either by the Ultra, or by the Cornerian fleet. Then, he sees the Ultra head for the disabled arwings, and pause. Then, he felt a great rage well up, one that he wasn't able to contain. "FIRE EVERYTHING!" he screamed. Techies tapped away on consoles and laser bolts erupted out of cannons along the flag ship. Oikonny felt satisfaction at seeing the Ultra squirm under the laser fire. Then, the barrage stopped as suddenly as it had started. "WHY HAVE YOU STOPPED FIRING?" he screamed again. It was a wonder why his voice didn't go hoarse.

"Sir, the cannons are beginning to overheat. If we keep this up, the cannons will overheat, and destroy the ship." an ape officer informed.

"I DON'T CARE, JUST KEEP FIRING!" Oikonny yelled. The laser fire resumed, but this time Shodai erected a light barrier, the crimson bolts harmlessly deflected off of the shimmering wall of light. Suddenly, The laser fire stopped, and true to the ape officer's word, the cannon emplacements began to explode from overheating. Inside the flag ship, on the bridge, consoles were blowing up in techies' faces as alarms went off. Oikonny sat back down in his chair, holding his head. Then, he did something he didn't expect to do, he laughed. It was a chuckle, then it became a cackle of madness. Everything was falling apart at the seams around him. What else could he do? Shodai delivered the arwings to the Great Fox, and now faced the armada.

"Sir, we have to get you to an escape pod." one of the officers said. Oikonny looked at him dumbly, and said something he didn't expect himself to say; "I give up…" After being ushered to his escape craft, he was jettisoned in time to see Shodai destroy the great ship with his signature Spacium Beam. Shortly after, The Ultra delivered the life-raft to the same cruiser that General Pepper was on. After being apprehended by the General, Shodai went to the Great Fox, where his the team received their new member openly, as if he had been brought back to the land of the living. "Man, we thought you were dead when we saw you vanish in Venom!" Slippy said. It was a few minutes after Shodai returned to the Great Fox. After the team calmed down a bit, they began to ask what was on their minds: "How the heck did you get here?" Fox asked. "We thought that you had died."

"Well, I'm not one to brag, but we Ultras are hard to kill. True, I was on the verge of total drainage after the fight, but I was able to revert back to my anthro guise at the last moment. That's what that flash was that you probably saw. After I came to, I was able to rejuvenate myself, and…take care of business."

"What do you mean, 'take care of business'?" Krystal asked.

"That doesn't matter right now, the remains of the fleet escaped back to Venom. Even though Oikonny is gone, there are others who are bound to replace him, and in a few weeks or less, the same thing will happen all over again." Peppy said, joining the others. Steven smiled a bit.

"Don't worry about them, Peppy. The Venomian army won't be a threat, for a long time to come."

"How do you mean?"

"You remember my mentioning taking care of business?"

"Uh…yeah?" Falco said, unsure.

"Oikonny was stupid enough to tell me that there were two other factories on Venom supplying his army."

"So?" Fox asked. Then, Steven smiled, in an evil way.

A couple of hours ago: In the interior of the planet Venom, one of the massive factories that supplied the Venomian army was working hard. Since that the army was out, Oikonny ordered that reinforcements be ready to back-up the armada, not that the ape thought that it needed it. However, the very last thing that they would expect, if it was to be expected at all, was a fourty meter tall red and silver giant to suddenly materialize out of thin air. The reptilian workers and simian officers stopped what they were doing, and looked up as Shodai looked around him. In the enormous caver, his head was a few hundred meters shy of reaching the ceiling. He looked around, then he let loose hell upon them. Firing his Spacium Beam, Shodai swept the blue/white ray of destruction across all that he saw. The beam brought destruction to all that it touched. Whole buildings, structures, vehicles, and unfinished products all either burst into flame, exploded, or were incinerated on contact. The workers and officers tried to flee, but Shodai showed no mercy to the race he saw as little more than butchers. He knew their kind all too well. He made sure that none survived the assault. He personally saw to that. When everything was nothing more than a charred, smoking ruined, he nodded in satisfaction, and teleported to the next target.

Present time: After relaying the information to the others, the Star Fox team was more than a little shocked. As Steven told them what transpired, he had a very satisfied look upon his face. Of all the people there to be stunned, was Krystal, mostly due to her telepathy, and picking up Shodai's memories of what he did. "So, in conclusion, it's safe to say that the Venomian army won't trouble you people for a long time to come." Steven said, feeling proud of himself.

"Uhhh, well, at least you're ahhhh….thorough." Peppy said, laughing nervously. Steven nodded, and left to his quarters, and Krystal picked up the last thought before he left.

'That was kinda fun. No wonder beings like Baltan, Keronia and others like to do that kind of thing.' After that, the blue-furred vixen felt herself go a little pale.

"I think it's best not to get on his bad side." Peppy said, the other nodding in solemn agreement. Krystal paid the Ultra/vulpine a visit. After knocking, she did so. The Ultra/vulpine was standing in the mirror, topless, expecting himself, as if looking for any wounds or imperfections. The vixen just stared at him, seeing the back and front, the back in front of her, and the front reflecting in the mirror. Seeing the defined muscles like that, she couldn't help but stare.

'He's even more toned than Fox…' she thought to herself.

"Nice of you to think so." Steven said, smiling a bit. Krystal caught herself, and looked away. Steven laughed, and faced the blue-furred vulpine, a smirk on his face. "See something you like?" he asks. Krystal blushed a bit in embarrassment, eliciting another laugh from the vulpine.

"You shouldn't tease me like that." Krystal pouted. Steven laughed, replacing his shirt on his body.

"What was it that you needed?" he asked.

"I just wanted to say, that I'm sorry, about earlier."

"Huh? Earlier about what?" he asked, puzzled.

"About my race. You were right. It wouldn't be right of me to abandon the people who took me in after they had saved me, to be with my own people again. They need me here." Steven nodded in agreement.

"I don't blame you at all for your reaction. It's common among the other sentient beings that my kind have encountered."

"You sound like a deity when you say that."

"Really?" he asked.

"Or rather, more like an arrogant blow-hard." she replied, laughing a bit. Steven stiffened a bit, and Krystal tried to recover. "I didn't mean for that to come out the way it sounded, I…"

"It's alright. I'm used to it. Falco would've agreed with you." he said, sitting down. He had a sullen look upon his face, and Krystal tried to comfort him.

"You shouldn't take it so hard. He's not used to having someone like you…well…"

"Saving you?" Steven asked. He looked up, wearing a sad smile. Krystal didn't know what to say. "He's entitled to his opinion. My race has no business interfering with your lives. That's the main reason why I didn't want to make contact with you like this."

"But…all the same, I'm glad you did." Krystal replied, smiling.

"Why? Another thing, why did you show such unreserved kindness to me when we first met on Fortuna?"

"To answer the first question, because I wouldn't have met you." Steven was taken aback by this. "I thought I told you this. And as for the second question, I felt that, you were wounded, and needed aid. After you had saved us from your adversary, I felt that it was time for me to return the favor."

"Speaking of returning…" Steven said, reaching behind himself for his back pocket. He pulled out the kerchief that Krystal used to bind his wound, and handed it back to the blue-furred vixen. "I think that, you need this more than I do." Krystal looked at it, then at Steven. Eventually, the vixen accepted the cloth back from Steven.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." Steven replied.

Several hours later saw General Pepper in his office once more. After the ape Oikonny was safely behind bars, he was able to relax, somewhat. He was aware of the threat posed by the one pursued by Shodai. He wanted to communicate with the Ultra, to tell him that he knew, and that he wanted to help.. It might be an awkward situation, but he feels the need to do it. After going over the last of the reports, he decided to ring the Star Fox team. On board the Great Fox, Fox McCloud was sitting in the command chair as Slippy and Peppy went over the diagnostic checks of the systems the ship. Going over a vessel as big as the Great Fox itself was a chore. Despite getting major upgrades, it still looked like it was a little beaten up. If not for the huge check that Fox got from single handedly saving Sauria a couple of months ago, the Great Fox would've been sold for spare parts by now, and the team would've been grounded for a long time. Also, it was fortuitous in another light; it allowed Krystal to become the newest member of the Star Fox team, and the interests of the team leader. Never really having much of a love-life, Fox was hoping to get to know the vixen a little better in the near future. However, with everything going on, what with Shodai/Steven being here and the new threat hanging over them, he doesn't think that he will find the time. Then, the screen in front him flickered, and the face of General Pepper was looking back at him. Fox stood straight up at the sight of him. "General Pepper." Fox said, saluting.

"At ease, Fox. I want to ask you something."

"What, General?"

"Could you send Steven, or should I say Shodai, to see me. It's imperative that I speak with him and try to sort this matter out. You all should be here as well, since it will pertain to you as well."

"Of course, General, right away." Fox answered. Shortly after, Great Fox docked in a space port in Corneria City, just outside of the Cornerian Army Command Center. The six anthros made their way to the CACC, and entered the spacious building. Making turns through several hallways, the group finally made it to the General's quarters. The door had a glass view with the word 'General' written on it. Fox knocked three times, and was bidden to enter. The team went in, and saw the General sitting behind his desk, hands together, propped up on his elbows, expecting them. He gave the team a slight smile, and addressed Steven.

"That was fine work you did back there, Steven. It's little wonder why your superiors sent you here, after this invader of sorts." The vulpine stiffened. Had his cover been blown? General Pepper laughed, and sat up, leaning back in the chair. "You can relax. Only the team and I know who you really are Steven, or should I say, Shodai, as you are known on M78, in the fourth galaxy." Steven tilted his head to one side, slightly, puzzled. "Your superior told me that you were pursuing a malevolent being, and that you might come past the Lylat System. If you were to avoid us, then nothing. However, if you were to chase your query here, I was to hand this to you" he held up an object that was shaped like a diamond. Steven gasped slightly when he saw it. "Yes. Zoffy gave me this, when he approached me. He told me that you might be here, chasing an evil alien. If you were to remain here for any length of time, I was to give this to you. He said it contained new orders for you." Pepper held it out, and Steven accepted it, rather uneasily. Knowing full well that he couldn't activate it while he was still an anthro, Steven pulled out his Beta Capsule, and converted to his Ultra form. The object in his hand glowed, and levitated. Then, it floated over to the side of the room, and changed. It started to spin rapidly, then the glow became a light, and it swelled until it became swirling mass of light as big as a man. The light changed again, becoming nearly transparent, then it became a shimmering red and gold color, with a person standing in it, if indeed he could be called a person. The being standing in the vortex looked much like Shodai did, save for the several studs that went up his chest and arms.

"Zoffy-Taijo…" Shodai said. The being in the vortex nodded, and addressed the other Ultra. Then, both began to speak in their native tongues.

"Space Patrolman Shodai. I have been monitoring your progress, and like with Earth, it has been exemplary. However, the being that you have been pursuing across the gulf of space has made his way to then Lylat System."

"I know, Commander. He had already enlisted the aide of one of the natives of this system. However, he has been dealt with. Now, all that's left is him."

"What do you think they're saying?" Slippy whispered to Fox. The vulpine merely shrugged. He looked to Falco.

"Don't look at me. I don't speak alien-ese." the avian replied. Krystal was at a loss as well, even though her sixth sense had enabled her to translate most languages. This one was impossible for her to figure out.

"Right. Your orders are as follows: you are to remain in the Lylat System until the threat has been dealt with. Enlist the aide of the natives as you see fit, but do not, in any way, interfere with their way of life. I should not have to tell you about the reasons why."

"No, Commander." Zoffy nodded, then the image flickered and died, the diamond returning to the Ultras hand. Shodai looked down at it, thinking. 'This is not the way it was supposed to be. Now the Lylat System will be made into my new battle ground with my enemy. That means innocent lives will be lost before this ordeal will be over…'

"Steven?" Krystal asked. The alien turned to face them, setting his glowing eyes upon them. "Are you alright?" she asked. Steven looked to them, then away.

"No, I'm not." he replied. "This was not the way it was supposed to happen. You people were not supposed to be involved in this…" The Warrior of Light clutched the object in his fist tightly, feeling the hopelessness of the situation wash over him. He had flashbacks of his previous battles, on planets like Earth, how the destruction caused there had been great, the casualties unbearable. Now, he sees the exact same thing happening again. He threw a fist at the wall facing him, the arm going through it to the elbow. The action surprised and shocked everyone. "DAMMIT!" Shodai shouted. He kept his arm where it was, not moving it. Debris from the impact fell off of the edge around the hole that he had made through the six-inch concrete wall. The Ultra was breathing heavily. Krystal went over, and placed a hand on Shodai's arm. The alien turned his head, looking into the vixen's caring eyes. His arm dropped from the hole that it had made, hanging limply by his side. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…" he said, barely above a whisper. Krystal embraced him, her head resting on his broad chest. The red and silver alien just held her there. He had another flashback: He was back on Fortuna, unconscious after landing on the planet's surface. When he came to, he found an alien beauty looking down at him. She looked like a fox, like the kind he had seen on Earth, except this one was blue, walked on two legs, and wore a type of flight suit. He tried to get up, startled by this new development.

"Easy, easy. I won't hurt you." she said, in a soft voice. Shodai could feel the warmth in it, and was put at ease from it. He rose up, and felt a sharp pain lance through his right arm, grasping it quickly. "Does it hurt?" she asked, holding the arm gently. The alien vixen pulled out a kerchief, and tied it around the arm, over the wounded area. "There. In a little while, it will be good as new." she said, feeling satisfied. Shodai looked down, and felt the cloth of the kerchief, and looked at the alien girl who continued to smile at him.

"A-arigato…" he said. The alien girl tilted her head to one side.

"What?" she asked.

"Arigato." Shodai replied, his voice having a type of echo-effect. The alien girl smiled again.

"Well, if that's your way of saying 'thank you', then you are very welcome." she replied. Shodai nodded. He heard voices, and someone's approach. The alien girl turned her head to the sound of her companions approaching. Shodai took a few steps back, and looked up.

"SHUWATCH!" the alien girl looked just in time to see Shodai fly through the air, and back out into space. Back in the present, Shodai sees the same alien girl displaying the same type of unreserved kindness as she had displayed on Fortuna. This made Shodai hold Krystal tighter than before. The blue-furred vixen shared the same memory as Shodai did, and smiled. The increase in pressure made her breath come shorter, but it didn't really matter to her. She can feel the anguish come off of the warrior in droves. He knows what lies in store for them, and has a good idea of the pain and sacrifices that might have to be made before this ordeal is over. She pulled away, and looked up at the red and silver alien warrior, still having that same warm smile on her muzzle. Shodai looked down, his mask-like visage featureless, but the vixen could feel the alien smile as well on the inside.

"Are we done giving eachother hugs? Because I think we need to get back to the issue at hand here." Falco interjected. Krystal turned, surprised by the avian as if he had just popped out of thin air. Shodai nodded, and took the object in his hand. Fox saw the emotional exchange between the two, and couldn't help but feel a little jealous. He had barely known the blue-furred vixen for a couple of months, and yet Steven got hugged by her after meeting her just a few scant weeks ago.

"I wish that you wouldn't take the issue as lightly, Falco. There's more at stake here than you realize." Shodai replied, his voice echoing slightly.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Still clutching the item, Shodai walked over to the others, and held his hand out. The item floated off of his hand, and in front of all of them, the glow returning and increasing gradually. "What is that, anyway?" the avian asked.

"It serves as a communication device on my planet, allowing two or more people to converse with eachother, no matter where they are in the known or unknown universe."

"A communication device…" Slippy said. Shodai nodded.

"However, it can only be activated by the energy given off by an Ultra being. That's why I transformed."

"So, are you calling your superior again?" Peppy asked. Shodai shook his head.

"While we are able to communicate with eachother, this device serves has another function."

"Which is?" Falco asked, getting tired with all the talking and no action.

"It also has access to our archives and records. And, that is what I am doing right now."

"What for, to give us a history lesson?" Krystal shot a glare at Falco's direction, which was ignored.

"To put it bluntly, yes. In order for you to understand my enemy, you must know more about him." The object's rotation and luminescence increased while the conversation went on, until it became a ball of light. "Good, it's ready now." Shodai did an arm gesture, and the light expanded to roughly the size of a man. The center of the light became a shape, then took form being a little bit bigger than a basketball. It was a planet, but none of which that the Star Fox team had not seen before. It looked like Corneria, but the planet was covered with more water than theirs was, and the landmasses were different. To Shodai, however, it was a world that he knew all too well. "Before I came to the Lylat system, I was assigned to the Sol System, which is located two galaxies away from here. The planet that you see, is the only planet in the system capable of supporting life. The inhabitants call it…Earth." The others looked at it as it revolved in front of them. The north and south American continents were coming into view, then Europe, then Asia.

"It's pretty…" Krystal said. Shodai nodded.

"Yes. Its beauty rivals Corneria's. That's why it was sought after by other alien beings. Most of which were, regrettably, malevolent in nature. That's also the first time I met…them."

"'Them'? Them who?" Fox asked.

"A race of highly advanced beings, rivaling my own in some cases. At first, they came to Earth, claiming that their ship was damaged and needed to repair it. However, they had another goal in mind." Shodai said.

"What goal was that?" Slippy asked.

"They destroyed their own world in a nuclear test, and that their ship held what was left of their civilization. They were on a journey to find a new home."

"Let me guess. They found Earth to be preferable." Fox said. Shodai nodded.

"Exactly. Once their demands had been made to subjugate the world to their will, they sent their chosen to prepare the planet for their coming. However, it was during the first week of my stay on Earth, and I dispatched with the aliens."

"What does that have to do with us?" Fox asked. Shodai continued.

"A few months later, the aliens reappeared, after I thought that I had destroyed them all. The survivors made it to a planet near Earth, and had resituated themselves. They declared war on Earth, and even took over a human to lure me and a group of others to the planet that they had stayed on. I defeated them again, but it had me thinking. If those survived, who's to say that others might not have, as well? After I left Earth, I decided to scour the cosmos, hunting down a prey that I hoped to be extinct. However, I found one of them two galaxies away from here. I chased him through space, to your Lylat system, unfortunately."

"And the rest, they say, is history." Peppy added.

"What's the name of the alien race?" Fox asked.

"They call themselves the Baltans." Shodai replied. "And now, one of them has his sights on your planet, and is intent on turning it into a slave colony."

"Can we fight back?" Slippy asked. Shodai shook his head.

"I wish you could. However, those who fight back, are often exterminated, and their home planet destroyed along with them." Shodai sighed, and moved to the window, looking out of it. "They're like locusts. They move from planet to planet and exhaust its resources until there's nothing left. And the people living on the planet are often used as slave labor, or worse."

"What's worse?" Slippy asked.

"Use your imagination." Shodai replied. When he did, Slippy shuddered. The red and silver alien turned to face them. "I didn't want for you people to go through this. Now, I dragged you into my conflict. Before this is over, I assure you, much blood will be spilt. The enemy you face is totally unlike anything that you have encountered, that I guarantee."

"I don't know, buddy. You haven't met…"

"Andross?" Shodai asked. "I know about him. I know that he declared war on the Lylat System, and nearly succeeded in taking it over."

"You learned that from our own records." Fox said.

"I also know that your father, James McCloud was murdered by him. How, during your high-school days, you nearly obsessed with defeating Andross. When Peppy offered you the chance to lead a new Star Fox team, you practically jumped at the chance without a second's hesitation. You and your team battled through Corneria, Meteo, Sectors X, Y, and Z, Fichina, Macbeth and several others, before reaching the stronghold of the mad ape scientist. How you were able to defeat the Star Wolf team several times, and how you, Fox, defeated Andross single handedly. Then, you saved the planet Sauria from the same being again, this time saving, not just the planet, but your newest member as well." Shodai said, gesturing to Krystal. "And now, you face against a threat that you cannot imagine."

"Okay, that's it!" Falco stormed to the Ultra. "I'm getting sick and tired of your lousy attitude, pal! Ever since you joined our little group, you've been doing nothing, except show off how powerful that you really are compared to us. We get it, alright! We get the fact that you belong to a race of super beings that could walk on water and such, but _you're_ not the protector of this system, _we_ are! We're the ones who fought Andross, and defeated him! We're the ones who risked life and limb to protect the Lylat System, while you off playing 'superhero' on some alien world! You have no idea how much we have suffered!" The avian was right in Shodai's face, standing up to his shoulders, glaring at him. The Ultra's mask-like face prevented him from betraying any emotions. However, the same could not be said for Krystal.

"Falco, that's enough!" she said, shoving the avian away. "All you've done ever since Steven got here is attack him! He's been the one helping us, and you stand here, belittling him! Did you forget that he nearly died in Venom, or that he saved us, including you no less, from Oikonny at least twice? You don't have the right to speak to him like that!" Falco rolled his eyes.

"Oh, for God's sake, Krystal! Will you just stop it? We all know that have a crush for Steven, or rather Shodai, since that's who he really is! Admit it, ever since you met him on Fortuna, you had a thing for him! Fox wasn't good enough for you, it seems, so you decided to head for the alien over there! That hug explains it. I suppose that you've slept with him as well?" 'SMACK!' Krystal's fist connected with his eye once more, and Falco fell. However, she didn't stop. Before he could get back up, the vixen kicked him in the ribs repeatedly, snarling in rage. Shodai got the vixen off of him, while Fox tended to his friend. All the while, general Pepper looked on at the developing scene, not saying anything, but mentally noting everything. Peppy was doing likewise, while Slippy looked from friend to friend, wondering how bad things were going to get. Krystal fought against Shodai's grip, even spinning around and smacking him on the side of his silvery face. His head turned, and Krystal gasped, realizing what it was that she had done. Shodai released the Krystal, the vixen stepping back from the Ultra.

"Steven…I…" If any emotion could be betrayed by his mask-like face, it would either be sorrow, or pity. Falco stood back up, a couple of his ribs undoubtedly fractured by the assault. He and Fox looked at the pair before them, wondering just how far this will go.

Venom: the figure sat in the chair, going over the feed of Shodai destroying the armada, along with the Cornerian fleet. While he did lose Oikonny in the process, he was now able to gather almost all of the data needed to bring to life his own ultimate weapon. Then, he heard an alarm, and almost bolted out of the chair and to another room. He looked inside, and saw that, to his great relief, that nothing was disturbed. The alarm was more than likely due to some involuntary, embryonic movement. 'Please, just wait a little while longer. It won't be much longer...'


	9. Old Friends, Bitter Enemies

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 9

Old Friends, Bitter Enemies

Great Fox, still docked in Corneria City: It was starting. The thing he had been dreading for a while had come to pass; the team was starting to lose its cohesiveness, and it was because of him. Steven was sitting on his bed, looking out of the viewport, and at the clear blue sky and clouds that passed by lazily. However, his thoughts were on other matters. 'I can't stay here for too much longer. If the team is to continue to function, then the alien element must be removed.' With that in mind, he started to plan on how to find the Baltan alone. 'I know that it must be near here, but I don't know which planet it is on. There are several planets that it could be hiding on, the least likely of them are Corneria, and Venom. Corneria, because I would have been able to sense it, no matter where on the planet it hid. And Venom, because it's hardly more than a barren wasteland. Then again, if a race of reptiles were able to survive, what else could be hiding there, I wonder.' After considering, Steven stood up. 'Very well. I'll head to Venom first, then I'll turn the Lylat System upside down if it isn't there.'

Krystal's room: The blue vixen was busy meditating, in effort to calm herself. However, due to the actions that had taken place a few scant hours before, such calm would not be able to reach her so easily. Falco's words still rung in her ears. 'We all know that you have a crush on Steven! Fox wasn't good enough for you, so you decide to head for the alien! I suppose that you've slept with him already?' These thoughts continued to haunt her, and sighing in frustration, she gave up on meditating for now. Instead, she decided to lie on her bed, and stare up at the ceiling, her thoughts swimming through her head.

'Is Falco right? Do I have a crush on Steven? I know that he's not really one of us, and yet, I can't help but feel something for him. It isn't exactly friendship, but something else. Infatuation, maybe? I've felt it, ever since I met him on Fortuna a few weeks ago when he first came to the Lylat System in pursuit of what he called a 'Baltan'. And now, he's a member of the Star Fox team. He's proven to be a valuable asset to us, and had made an impression on the team. Though, for some, not a very _good_ impression.' she thought, thinking of Falco. She turned over to her side, and her eyelids suddenly got too heavy for her to keep open.

Bridge of the Great Fox: Fox and Peppy were going over the system start-up procedures before lifting off back into space. After getting the green-light, the engines on the famous vessel ignited to life, and the great ship lifted up into the sky once more. Soon, it was orbiting the planet, and was heading back out into the reaches of space. What the team didn't know was, that their newest member was about to make his own escape into space; Steven made his way to the hangar of the ship, and stood in front of the forcefield that blocked his way. He raised his Beta Capsule, and it flashed once. In a blinding light. Steven turned to his Ultra form, and the red and silver Shodai took one last look behind him, as if to say farewell, then flew out of the hangar. Once he felt he was far enough away, he became a ball of red light, and streaked for the planet known as Venom.

Venom: He could feel it. His old enemy was approaching him, and he was ready for it. He was surprised that the Garrison Member had taken as long as he had, but the wait was well worth it. When he had done what his predecessors, if not his whole race, could not do, he will have free reign of this system, and his whole empire will begin anew. He activated his ship's thrusters, and lifted out of the atmosphere, and into space. There, the red and silver Warrior of Light met his old foe, just in orbit around the planet Venom. After dropping his Travel Sphere, Shodai floated in front of the alien ship, a stand-off between two of the most famous rivals in the universe, an Ultra against a Baltan. The Baltan, still wearing his cloak, smiled underneath his hood. "So, Space-Patrol man, you finally found me. I say, it has taken you quite long enough."

"You picked an ingenious place to hide yourself, Baltan. One of the least likely places that anyone would guess to look for you would be a planet that is nearly incapable of supporting life. However, I found that if that race of reptiles could survive, why shouldn't you?"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha. Well done. However, you have merely found me. Stopping me is quite another matter altogether." The Baltan replied.

"What do you mean?"

"Come now. Surely even you, with all your gifts, should be able to see what is inside this ship with me." The Baltan said, wearing a grin. Shodai used his X-ray vision, and what he saw made his heart nearly jump to his throat.

"No. I thought I destroyed that ship…" he says to himself. Baltan heard it, and laughed.

"You _thought_ you did. When in reality, it was in hiding on Planet R, in the Sol System. You remember this ship quite well, don't you?" Shodai did, as his mind flash-backed to that time.

One year ago: He had just destroyed the Baltan on Earth, and was now carrying their ship to space. That's when Shodai spotted it, another Baltan craft floating in orbit just out of reach of the Earth's gravitational pull. When he saw it, he didn't think, he just acted; He used his X-Ray vision, and what he saw made his heart skip. Not wasting time, he grabbed the saucer. After he was far enough away, he released the two ships, and fired his Spacium Ray. The powerful white stream of energy tore through the first ship, and it promptly exploded in a cloud of fire and debris. When the smoke cleared, there was nothing left of either ships. After looking around, Shodai was satisfied that the threat had been eliminated. He returned to Earth, to be reunited with the man known as Shin Hayata.

Present: Shodai was staring down the same ship that he thought he had destroyed so long ago, and felt his anger rising up as Baltan laughed from inside. "You poor, stupid fool. If only you had been a bit more thorough, you would have found this ship escaping to the planet known as R. How else do you think we were able to mount another assault on the Earth? And while the rest went off to prepare the way to Earth, I was left behind to oversee the ship, until the signal was given that you were finally defeated. However, after I found that you had defeated us _again_, I did the only thing that I could think of: I took the ship, and got as far away from the system, and you, as possible. Throughout the time I was given, I hunted down planets that I could use to start over. And just when I was about to find it, You come along. However, fortune had smiled upon me, for you pursued me right to _this_ very system. A perfect place for me to raise my new empire!" Shodai knew that the Baltan wasn't bluffing. If the contents of that saucer were accurate, then Baltan wasn't just planning on turning the system into a slave colony.

"I will not allow you to turn this peaceful system into a place of death. I will stop you, here and now." Shodai got into his Spacium Ray pose, and fired the white stream of energy, only to have the ship fly out of the way. Shodai looked up, and flew after the saucer. This time, it will not get away from him.

Sector Y, at that time: Krystal had headed for the gymnasium, to clear her thoughts, when the alarm went off in the corridor. Immediately, she headed for the bridge, and saw what the disturbance was; flying right at them was the Baltan saucer, and Shodai in his Ultra form. The scene reminded her of the first time that she saw the pair, to the point that she thought that she was reliving it. Only when the others came streaming in did she realize that it was reality. "Is that Steven?" Slippy asked.

"Yeah. And look who he's chasing." Falco said, pointing at the screen.

"Looks like he found the Baltan after all." Fox said, almost under his breath. The two sped past them, as if they were not there, and were headed on a b-line for Corneria. "Slippy, turn the ship around, and follow them."

"On it, Fox." Slippy replied. After setting in the proper commands, The ship turned, and was pursuing the two alien rivals. However, it wouldn't be later until the team would arrive to do anything for either side. After a few short minutes, both aliens had arrived at Corneria, the saucer stopping just short of entering its gravitational pull. Shodai also stopped, and the two had a stand-off once more.

"All I have to do to possess this system, is to get rid of you, Garrison Member. Once I have taken care of that, the pathetic military of this system will be all too easy to overcome. I could do it, single-handedly." the Baltan's voice said, a hint of triumph showing. Shodai remained stoic.

"Your kind always did proclaim victory before actually winning, Baltan. You still have to face me. A very difficult task, as you are well aware."

"Difficult, yes. But not impossible to say the least. I will _not_ make the same mistakes as my predecessors did. This time, you will die here. I will personally see to that." That said, the ship fired its main weapon, and the energy beam nearly collided with the alien warrior. Having been dealing with this system's technology had almost made Shodai forget how much more advanced the Baltans were than them, its weapon more deadly than Oikonny's own heat beam. But still, he was not about to give up. He fired his Spacium Ray, and the laser duel started. Back and forth, the two fired their lasers, not one landing a hit. The two combatants danced and weaved amid eachother. It wasn't until the Great Fox arrived from hyper-jump that things started to heat up. On the bridge, the team scrambled to their arwings, and headed for the battlefield. Shodai was firing away with his Spacium Ray, while the Baltan ship continued to try and blast the Warrior of Light. Finally, Shodai was able to land a hit on the saucer, and it was sent careening down to the surface of the planet. Shodai followed it down, with the team close by. The alien warrior failed to take notice of their presence, focusing solely on the task at hand. The saucer, the damaged top still smoking and sizzling, made a crash landing in the center of Corneria City. The saucer made a large crater in the middle of the intersecting street, and debris kicked up from the landing rained down over a few kilometers. Inside, alarm klaxons were going off, and the panel was shorting in front of the robed figure, throwing sparks and sprouting flames. The Baltan quickly got up, and the automatic fire extinguisher overhead quickly went to work, spouting water onto the flames, dousing them. Kemur came running into the room, panting as he did so. The Baltan turned to him, anxiety evident in his voice. "Is the brood chamber secure?"

"Yes, milord, it is. Only the outer walls were damaged, with no loss of life within."

"Good, good." the Baltan said, relief clearly showing in his voice. He looked up at the ceiling, his fists clenched. "It's time for me to take matters into my own hands. I will deal with the meddlesome Garrison Member and take his life, no matter what."

"Sir, let me handle it. I can defeat…"

"Silence!" Baltan shouted, making its faithful servant take a step back in surprise. Baltan saw this, and recomposed itself. "Forgive me, old friend. A lot has happened in the short amount of time."

"There is no need to apologize, milord. It is perfectly understandable."

"Good. As I said, I will deal with the Ultra. I want you to remain here, and guard the ship, especially the brood chamber. You will protect that room with your very life, do you understand?"

"Yes, milord."

"Good. I'll be off."

"Milord, one last thing."

"What is it?" Baltan asked, pausing.

"Good hunting, milord." Baltan had to smile at that. How could it not. It exited through one of the doors, while Kemur went through another.

Corneria City: Shodai landed in the center of the city, almost right next to the crashed Baltan ship. Warily making his way to the downed saucer, the red and silver alien warrior notice a small opening, and a cloaked figure walking out. The figure raised a hand at the red and silver alien, and spoke telepathically. "This is the end for you, Garrison member! I will rid your existence from the universe, once and for all!" As he was speaking, the Star Fox team was able to catch up to the two aliens, and followed them to the surface of the planet. The Great Fox was hovering above the two combatants as Baltan conversed.

"Looks like Steven already took care of things down there," Slippy said, looking at the monitor.

"I don't think so, Slip. That guy down there looks really steamed to me." Falco replied. On the ground, Baltan lowered its arm, and laughed. It was low, barely audible. Then, it built up in pitch and volume, until it deepened to a point that no creature in the Lylat could match. The laugh sounded like something from a nightmare. Then, all at once, the cloaked figure began to glow, and flash. The light then became as dark as shadow, with a purple outline. The figure swelled to match Shodai, and when the figure finally took shape, it was one that Shodai remembers all too well; It stood at least as tall as him, and was humanoid in shape. It had two large lobster-like claws on the ends of each of its arms, and had an insect-like exoskeleton. Its head was like of a bug's or insect's, in that it had two large, glowing compact eyes that swiveled independently on the front of its face, and a type of proboscis in front, while the top of the head sported what looked like glowing/flashing V-shaped antenna. It issued the same haunting laugh as it did before it transformed. Shodai knew that he was looking at Baltan III, the third Baltan warrior that he has encountered. Baltan waved its massive claws at him in a threatening manner, before pulling them back to his body, bending his arms up at the elbow, slightly raising and lowering the claws as it continued to laugh. The Star Fox team looked on at what had just happened, taken by surprise at the sudden turn of events.

"Is that one of Baltan's monsters?" Slippy asked.

"I think…that _is_ Baltan…" Krystal said. The sensations that she was getting from it sent shivers down her spine.

"So, it decided to face Steven itself." Fox said. He turned to his team. "Alright, let's get out there guys. Steven or no, we're going to show that over-sized craw-dad what happens when you mess with Lylat!" His words acting like a starter pistol, the team headed out of the door, minus Peppy and ROB 64, and made a bee-line for the hangar. On the ground, the stand-off between Shodai and Baltan III continued. Then, it was Baltan's turn to speak once more. This time, in a voice that was deep, and menacing.

"Doesn't this bring back memories, Garrison Member? Remember how you stood before my brethren twice before, almost exactly like this? How you defended the people from them, and how they worshipped you like a hero because of it?" The words were meant to be hurtful to the Ultra. "I remember. I remember how my race faced near extinction at your hands. And we were not the only ones. Oh, no. We were merely the first of many creatures to be _murdered_ by you on Earth." The Star Fox team was floating behind the pair, none of them noticing what was going on, but the team was getting an earful of the conversation that was going on between the two giants.

"What did he mean by 'murdered'?" Slippy asked. None of the others had a clue. But Baltan went on.

"Shortly after, you fought creatures that were dangerous to the humans on Earth. Most of them were just large animals that were merely acting on instinct. But you killed them anyway, without remorse or regret. The monsters that you so callously ended with your bare hands, that are now stained with their blood. Gamikujira, Gavadon, Kemular, Neronga, Ragon, Gomorah, and countless others that you have killed. All to protect that race of selfish, greedy barbarians called the human race."

"They were dangerous and destructive. I had no choice but to end them." Shodai replied.

"You didn't even bother to help them! You're just using that as an excuse to justify your actions. Every sentient race that has heard of the humans _knows_ their true nature. They wage wars upon eachother, pollute their environment, abuse and kill eachother and their planet, they are on a one way road to extinction. And you, by destroying the only things that can cull the human race, are aiding them. The only reason why you were not put before a trial, was because you were _assigned_ to protect that planet from hostile forces. You, part of a race that like to fancy themselves as gods. Me, part of a dying breed, brought about by your hand. Two bitter enemies on the battle-field once more." The two giants got into their battle stances, and waited for the other to make a move. They circled eachother, a slow, tense moment before the moment when one of them would strike first. Then, both combatants charged forth.

Baltan's ship, in the room known as the 'brood chamber': It was mostly bare, save for two walls lined with what looked like glass drawers. Inside of these drawers were several thousand nearly microscopic oval-shaped yellow objects. One of them begins to quiver, and a crack appears on it, signifying that the new life inside is ready to be born.


	10. Shodai's Decision

Ultraman, the Lylat Adventure

Chapter 10

Shodai's Decision.

Kemur entered the Brood Chamber of the saucer. What he saw, made his heart, if it could be called a heart, skip a beat or two; one of the glass drawers containing the embryos begins to quiver slightly and an alarm went off, alerting any crewmembers to the movement.

Outside of the saucer, in the middle of Corneria City, a war of gigantic proportions was being waged. Shodai and Baltan III went at eachother, each wanting to end the other's life. The giant red and silver Shodai somersaulted out of the way of one of Baltan's claw blasts. The missile-like projectile hit a building, reducing it to rubble. Shodai sent a shredding halo at it, but Baltan III swatted it away with one of its claws, the saw-blade slicing through another office building. Both combatants got back up, and struck eachother; Baltan III swung with its right claw, but Shodai parried and caught the appendage. He sent two punches to its insect-like face before the Baltan struck out with the other claw, making Shodai back off. Baltan III thrusted its claw forward, and grasped the Warrior of Light by the throat, bringing him to a knee. Baltan let out another of its haunting laughs as it saw this. However, Shodai would not have any of it. Summoning his will, Shodai stood back up, and knocked the claw off of his neck. Shodai grasped at his neck, rubbing it as the wind-pipe sent air back to his lungs. The Baltan used this as an opportunity to strike; Baltan III struck out with one of its claws, and was successful in knocking the Warrior of Light on his back. Then, looming over the Space Patrolman, Baltan III opened one of its claws, the interior of it glowing with energy. As Shodai saw this, he knew he had only one chance. Tucking his legs in, he kicked at the Baltan with both feet, knocking it back just as it fired its blast, letting it loose into the air. Baltan III fell onto his back, and Shodai ran over to him, and grabbed both of his legs, each leg under one arm. Then, he spun around a few times before releasing his opponent, sending the insect-like invader crashing through several office buildings, and bringing them down onto the Baltan. Baltan III erupted out of the rubble, the debris falling off of him as it did so, swinging its claws in rage. Shodai took two steps towards the alien, but stopped abruptly. Baltan III let out a low laugh, and then vanished in a heart beat. Shodai looked this way and that, trying to find his enemy. He knew that the Baltans are capable of disappearing and making copies of themselves, thus the nickname 'Space Ninja' was given to them by the Earthlings. He felt something strike him from behind, and Shodai fell forward. He got back up, and something unseen struck him in the face, knocking him through several buildings at once. Shodai stood up, and looked around. His eyes flashed, and twin beams of light, like search-lights, came from his eyes. He swept them across the city, until he finally found the Baltan, standing several hundred meters from where he was. He lunged at the Space Ninja, and grappled with him. To those watching the fight, it looked like he was grappling with air. Then, he hoisted something up over himself, then threw it. Baltan III rematerialized, and landed on his feet, like a cat. He turned, and fired his claw blasts at Shodai. The Space Patrolman cartwheeled out of the way, while the blasts devastated the surrounding area. Then, Shodai sent a Shredding Halo at the alien, which sliced off one of its arms, the appendage falling to the ground as it was separated from the main body. Baltan III grasped the stump in pain with its remaining claw, falling to its knees. Shodai walked towards the alien, standing over the invader as it looked up at him with its swiveling eyes. "It's time for me to put an end to your existence." Shodai said.

"Of course it is. You finally got what you wanted. Just, promise me one thing."

"And what is that?" Shodai asked.

"Make it quick. For me, and my race." Shodai nodded. He took a step back, and placed his left arm in front of his right, both hands fully extended in a cross shape as he prepared to fire his infamous Spacium Ray.

"No!" Both Shodai and Baltan III turned to the source of the shout, and saw the arwings come between the two giant aliens. It was Krystal who spoke. "Shodai, you can't kill him."

"Why not?" he asked.

"Because he is the last remaining adult of his kind. Without him, the children on that ship will die."

"Children?" Fox asked, turning to face the vixen. Krystal nodded.

"As they fought, I was able to touch the Baltan's mind. I saw its memories, and now I know, what it meant by calling Shodai a murderer. When the Baltans originally came to Earth, they were seeking a new home to call their own. You told us that they wanted to enslave all of the inhabitants of Earth, but that's not really happened, is it Steven?" she asked, turning a hard stare at the Space Patrolman. He looked away from her, then back at the saucer. "No. The fact is, they were _refused_ permission to stay on Earth, and were told by the very human that you befriended to leave immediately, or else they would be destroyed. Isn't _that_ what happened?" she asked. Again, Shodai didn't answer. He looked at the saucer as his mind raced back to that day.

A year ago on Earth: It was night at the building known as the Space Technical Center, where a UFO was reported to have been spotted. IT was also there that Science Patrol member Arashi had been possessed by the aliens. Ide and Hayata found their comrade, and what the alien possessing him had to say. "Space creature, why are you here on Earth?" Hayata asked.

"We of the star Baltan lost our home planet in a nuclear catastrophe. We were able to escape before our world was destroyed. While traveling through space, our ship lost its gravitational equilibrium, and we were forced to land here to repair it."

"Why did you choose to land here?" Hayata asked.

"Your technical center has the parts we need ion order to repair our ship." the possessed Arashi replied.

"Another thing. Why did you attack the people down in the center."

"It is obvious. Because they got in our way."

"Where do you plan on going now?" he asked.

"We were hoping that we could remain here on Earth, until our repairs are done and we can be on our way." There was a pause before Hayata replied.

"You can…" just then, the star-shaped emblem on the right breast side of Hayata's uniform went off. He pulled up the small radio antennae, and spoke to it. "This is Hayata."

"Hayata, this is the Captain." Muramatsu's voice replied. The commanding Officer of the Science Patrol was sitting at the controls of the super computer, while the commanding joint chiefs of staff were in the office beside him. "I just received orders to not let the aliens remain here."

"But sir, they only wish to repair their ship." Hayata argued. Just then, one of the officers took the communication device from Muramatsu, and spoke into it.

"Hayata, this is the commanding general of the JSDF. We will _not_ let hostile forces settle here, for any reason. They attacked the people inside of the technical center, possibly killing them. I don't care if they claim it is in self-defense, the fact of the matter is that they attacked innocent people."

"But general, they just want to…"

"If they wanted the parts to repair their ship, then they could have asked us first, then come to an agreement."

'Like how you wanted to blow them out of the sky a few hours ago, general?' Muramatsu thought, his mind going back to the meeting four hours ago. Everyone in the room, save for the captain himself, wanted to find and attack the alien's ship. However, Muramatsu suggested communicating with the aliens first, rather than resort to violence. Well, he got what he wanted, but still the other leaders wanted to attack the aliens, and now it looks like they found the proper excuse.

"You have your new orders. You are to tell them to either leave, or face retaliation." As Hayata signed off, he wondered just how he was going to break this to the aliens. As he turned, the possessed Arashi raised a hand, as if to silence him.

"We have heard." he lowered his hand, and went on. "We should have known that you humans would refuse us. You always fear what you do not understand, wage war upon eachother, and commit atrocities numerously. We had hoped that you would be different."

"We're sorry, but you cannot remain here. Please, leave at once or you will be fired upon." Hayata replied, keeping his face as stoic as possible.

"We need those parts, and we will not leave until we get them. If we do not have those parts, we will not be able to leave this planet."

"I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do." Hayata replied. Just then, Arashi fainted, and he collapsed. Ide rushed to his side as a Baltan appeared from the doorway from the far right. Hayata turned to it, and threw his knife at it. It bounced off of the alien, and it retreated back into the shadows. Ide and Arashi were quick to retreat, but a new threat arrived, a gigantic Baltan the size of an office building stood up right in front of them. Hayata raised the Beta Capsule, and pressed the switch.

Present: As Shodai looked at the saucer, Krystal felt the memories that Shodai was digging up. "Yes, they were refused on Earth. And because of that, the Baltans reacted in a way that I should have seen coming. And, the war between me and them began."

"If you really wanted, you could have avoided it, couldn't you?" He looked at Krystal's arwing. "If you could have, you could have negotiated with the Baltans _and_ the humans. You could have done something, rather than just destroy their whole race. But instead, you killed them all, leaving only one adult, and thousands of unborn eggs, just waiting to be hatched." Shodai cast his glowing eyes to the saucer, and came to only one conclusion. Fast as lightning, he sent a Shredding Halo at the ship. Baltan turned just in time to see the buzz-saw shaped ring fly home, and felt its heart stop. Then, it exploded just before reaching the saucer. Shodai dropped his pose, surprised at the sudden turn of events. Then Krystal's arwing floated in front of the giant, the vixen having determined look about her. "If you want to kill them, then you'll have to kill me too." Shodai was taken aback by this. "Yo don't know what it's like…to be the last of your kind. Even though I found out that I was not the last, for three whole years I believed my race was dead. You don't know how lonely that can be. That's why, I can't let you do this."

"I will not let them take over this planet." Shodai said.

"And I will not let you commit genocide!" Krystal shouted. Baltan III stood back up, still cradling its stump of an arm. It looked at the floating arwing in front of it, then began to walk forward. Shodai heard its footsteps, and turned to see the crippled invader advanced towards the arwing. He got into his battle stance, and prepared to finish the alien off.

"No!" Krystal said. Shodai turned to face her, then back at the advancing Baltan. "Don't hurt him, Steven. He's just going back to his ship. Please, let him pass. And then, there's something that I want you to do for me."

"And what's that?" the Space Patrolman asked. Baltan III was two steps away from the ship when he fell to his knees again, groaning in pain.

"I want you, to help the Baltans, like you should have the first time."

"What?" he asked.

"Do what you should have done from the beginning. Instead of ending them, help them to settle on another planet. Your kind has knowledge of space that far surpasses ours. Use that to help them. If you don't then I won't forgive you."

"Krystal, you don't understand. That thing will unleash its prodigy on this planet, and take over everything."

"You know that's not what it wants. If you have only patched things up from the beginning, this would not have happened. You committed genocide, leaving only him, and the unborn left. Now please, make up for what you've done. You can still put things right, but only if you help them here and now."

"Moving words, for a lesser evolved being." Baltan III said. Krystal turned her arwing to face the Baltan, and was surprised to see it standing up, as well as holding something in its claw. She could barely see it, but she could make out the greenish glow from it. However, Shodai recognized it right away.

"Krystal, get away from there!" he shouted, and got back into his Spacium Ray stance. Baltan III chuckled.

"Yes, you recognize _this_, don't you." he replied, taking a step forward. "This is the same monster that defeated you on Earth. This is the Space Dinosaur, Zetton!"

"Space…Dinosaur…" Krystal said, not comprehending what the alien was saying. However, Shodai understood perfectly.

"Listen, Baltan, if you let that thing loose, it will destroy not only the city, but also the saucer that holds your brood. And I'm pretty sure you don't want that to happen." Shodai did not drop his pose.

"That's right. I only brought this thing along as a last resort. In case you should defeat me, and there was no other way, I was going to unleash the one being powerful enough to defeat you. However, I have another idea." The Baltan placed the tiny capsule down in front of it. Then, it raised its claw, and with a loud shout, brought it crashing down on the capsule, smashing it and the figure inside into so much dust.

"What are you doing?" Shodai shouted.

"My people made the mistake of trying to reason with the better nature of the inhabitants of Earth. So instead, I'll try to appeal to _your_ better nature." Baltan III fell to his knees once more. "As you can see, I am unable to fight back, and I just destroyed the only thing that can defeat you. All I want, is to see that my kind survive. So, what are you going to do now, Space Patrolman?" Shodai kept his pose, having an old-fashioned stare-down with the Baltan that kneeled before it. Then, gradually, his hands fell away to his sides. He moved towards the wounded Baltan, and knelt next to it. He placed a hand on its shoulders, and nodded at it. He turned to the Krystal's arwing, and nodded at her. She smiled broadly, and nodded back. "I must put the eggs back under. This will be the final time that I will be able to do so. Afterward, when next they hatch, they will do so unfailingly. This time, we must find a planet that we can inhabit. Will you help us?" Baltan III asked. Shodai nodded.

"I will."

"…thank you, Space Patrolman Shodai."

Several hours later: Although the damage to the city was extensive, repair crews were underway to undo it. However, it was not that, that the Star Fox team was focusing on. But rather, on the person standing in front of them, and the saucer that rested behind him. Steven, aka Shodai of the Space Garrison forces of M78, was saying farewell to the Star Fox team. "Are ya sure you have to go?" Slippy asked.

"I'm sure. My mission here, it seems, has been a success. I will send the Baltan to M78, where we will locate a suitable world for it to colonize, then escort it there. After that, I will be reassigned to another system."

"I guess this is goodbye then." Fox said, stepping forward and holding his hand out. Steven took it, and shook it firmly. "If you're ever around, don't hesitate to look us up." he said. Steven nodded, smiling slightly. He moved to Slippy, Falco, and Peppy, doing the same thing. He stopped in front of Krystal, and held his hand out. However, the cerulean vixen embraced him. She broke away, stepping back to where she was. Steven was caught a little off guard by this, but recovered.

"What about your race. You said that you wanted me to take you to your family." Krystal looked back at her teammates, who looked to her, and smiled warmly. She returned it, and looked back at the alien vulpine.

"I am with my family. However, I would like you to send a message to my family."

"Oh? And what message may that be?" Steven asked, smiling in an amused manner. Krystal relied, a tear forming in her eye.

"Tell them…that I am doing fine." Steven nodded, looked at the Star Fox team.

He took a step back, and raised his Beta Capsule. He pressed a switch, and there was a great flash of light and a loud whooshing sound. Standing before them, was Steven's true form of the being from M78, Shodai. He was only six feet tall, but he never lost his sense of power. He turned around, and nodded at the saucer. The, a humming came from the saucer, and it began to rise into the air. It floated into the sky just as Shodai turned once more to face the Star Fox team. He reached for his warning light, where it flashed once, then pushed his hand out. An object no bigger than a marble floated from him, and into Krystal's hands. She took it, and saw it was the same communication device that General Pepper had given to him. She looked up at the red and silver alien warrior. "In case you find yourself in a position where you know you can't defeat the enemy on your own, remember that you have powerful allies who are willing to stand beside you." Krystal smiled again, and nodded. Shodai nodded as well, and looked up. "SHUWATCH!" he flew up into the air, with the saucer following close behind. The team continued to look on, even long after the two became specks against the sky, then disappeared into the vast reaches of space. Krystal held the diamond-shaped item in her furry paw, with one thought going through her head.

'Arigato, Steven. Goodbye.'


End file.
